Ex-Nueva Ecija lawmaker faces criminal raps over P15-M PDAF scam

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales has ordered the filing of graft and malversation charges against former Nueva Ecija representative Aurelio Umali for his alleged involvement in a P15-million pork barrel scam.

Umali will face four counts of violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and three counts of malversation for the alleged illegal disbursement of his multimillion-peso Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) allocation in 2005, which was intended for the acquisition of irrigation pumps and fertilizers for farmers in Laur, Gabaldon, Bongabon, Santa Rosa, General Natividad and Cabanatuan City.

Also ordered charged were alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles, Regional Executive Director Renato Manantan and accountant Narcisa Maningding of the Department of Agriculture (DA), and Anita Tansipek and Corazon Bautista from the non-government organization Samahan ng mga Manininda ng Prutas sa Gabi, Inc. (Samahan)

Aside from facing criminal charges before the Sandiganbayan, Umali and Manantan were found guilty of Grave Misconduct, Gross Neglect of Duty and Conduct Prejudicial to the Best Interest of the Service and were ordered dismissed from the service.

They were also meted the accessory penalties of perpetual disqualification from holding public office and forfeiture of retirement of benefits.

Bogus purchase, ghost projects

Based on the Ombudsman’s investigation, Umali identified and endorsed the Samahan and the Napoles-controlled Masaganang Ani Para sa Magsasaka Foundation, Inc. (MAMFI) as partner NGOs for the implementation of his pork barrel-funded project. The DA downloaded P12 million to MAMFI and P3 million to Samahan for the project’s implementation.

The Ombudsman said Umali and the other respondents made it appear that the funds were used to buy 7,920 bottles of liquid fertilizers and 15 irrigation pumps, but investigators found “there was no real purchase at all” since the liquid fertilizers had been sourced from another Napoles company, Nutrigrowth Philippines.

Similar findings of “ghost projects” were confirmed regarding the supposed purchase of irrigation pumps.

In addition to bogus purchases, the Ombudsman found that the NGOs tapped for Umali’s PDAF-funded project lack the necessary credentials and track record to implement it.

Other irregularities which the Ombudsman found were the absence of market survey and identification of product standards for the agricultural implements, the absence of public bidding, the usage of undated and unnumbered disbursement vouchers, and lack of delivery of irrigation pumps to the intended beneficiaries.

In a 38-page resolution indicting Umali, Morales said “the funds in question could not have been transferred to said NGOs if not for their certifications, approvals, signatures found in the disbursement vouchers and checks.”

“To be able to divert substantial funds from the PDAF and the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Program funds, access had to be made available, and this was made possible by Umali who chose MAMFI and the Samahan to implement his livelihood projects,” she said.

The Ombudsman noted that Umali also signed the project proposals and endorsed the NGOs to facilitate the release of the funds to them. —ALG, GMA News