President Rodrigo Duterte promised he would put corrupt officials of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) behind bars, which is currently under investigation over alleged anomalies.
“Huwag kayong magkakamali…itong PhilHealth. Sabi ko yayariin ko kayong lahat, maniwala kayo. Iyong mga inosente naman, wala kayong dapat i-ano, tahimik lang kayo at continue working ,” Duterte said in a televised address aired Monday night.
(Make no mistake, PhilHealth. I told you, I will finish you all, believe me. If you are innocent, you don’t need to worry. Just continue working quietly.)
“Nakalusot kayo sa ibang maybe presidente o ano pero dito sa akin, sadsad talaga kayo [You evaded other presidents, but there’s no escaping me],” he added.
Duterte added he would get the “true” figures of agency’s finances from the Commission on Audit (COA), a member of the multi-agency task force he created to probe the widespread corruption in PhilHealth.
Department of Justice, Office of the Ombudsman, Office of the Executive Secretary, Office of the Special Assistant to the President, the Civil Service Commission, the Commission on Audit, and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) would also form the task force.
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The task force is authorized to conduct lifestyle checks and to impose preventive suspensions on anyone involved in anomalies in PhilHealth.
“I will really send these sons of b****** to jail… I will recover (the funds)… if the ombudsman summons you… you can’t say no. I think the ombudsman will be pissed off. You will just be dismissed for refusing to obey the order,” Duterte said.
“With the help of Cabinet members, I won’t brag but these are simple people. Why? Why are they really helping me to get rid of you? If possible I would kill you. You know why? Because simply they love their country,” he added.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque meanwhile, assured the public that there would be no leadership vacuum if PhilHealth president Ricardo Morales take a leave. Morales is diagnosed with lymphoma and was undergoing chemotherapy.
“The President wishes president Morales speedy recovery. He won’t be harsh on anyone who said he is suffering from a serious illness. We wish him the best and we hope that he recovers right away,” he added.