Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada said he will remove at least 700 “ghost employees” at city hall.
The employees are part of a scam under Republic Act 15-30 who report to city hall every 15 and 30 of the month to collect a bogus salary. Mayor Estrada said these people were earning a salary from the city government without doing anything.
The mayor added that the ghosts were all appointees of former mayor Alfredo Lim.
“I have removed some of them. They are 700. All Lim’s loyalists. I will retain those JOs whose positions are still needed by the city government,” he said.
Estrada said the city government is tightening its budget after Lim left the city in bankruptcy.
“One-third of our income goes to salaries and wages. That is why we are belt-tightening,” the mayor said, adding that paying the salaries of the ghost employees “was draining the city coffers.”