Ex-DBM chief Pangandaman faces raps over P60 billion PhilHealth fund transfer

Former Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman is facing a complaint for alleged technical malversation, graft, and other administrative raps over the unconstitutional transfer of the P60 billion excess funds of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) and the P107 billion funds of the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) to the national treasury.

Dr. Tony Leachon made the allegations under a supplemental complaint filed before the Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday.

“Complainant respectfully states that Respondent Amenah Pangandaman, former Secretary of Budget and Management, should likewise be included among the respondents, to the extent that the questioned transfer, budget execution measures, SAROs, NCAs, remittances, or related implementation acts were authorized, approved, initiated, undertaken, or allowed during her tenure as Secretary of Budget and Management,” the complaint read.

SARO refers to the Special Allotment Release Order while NCA is the Notice of Cash Allocation.

“Respondent Amenah F. Pangandaman is impleaded only to the extent of acts, approvals, issuances, budget execution measures, or omissions occurring during her tenure as Secretary of Budget and Management,” the complaint said.

“The inclusion of Respondent Amenah F. Pangandaman is consistent with the allegations of concerted and coordinated governmental action already set forth in the original Verified Complaint, particularly with respect to the implementation and execution of the questioned fund transfer mechanism,” it added.

GMA News Online has reached out to Pangandaman for comment and will publish it as soon as it becomes available.

In December last year, the Supreme Court (SC) ordered the government to return the P60 billion excess funds of PhilHealth through the 2026 General Appropriations Act (GAA).

In a 136-page decision, the SC En Banc declared void the Special Provision 1(d), Chapter XLIII of the 2024 GAA, Finance Circular No. 003-2024, and the transfer of the P60 billion for having been issued with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

Earlier, Leachon filed a complaint against Executive Secretary and former Finance Secretary Ralph Recto, former Budget Secretary Rolando Toledo, PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Edwin Mercado, ex-PhilHealth President and CEO Emmanuel Ledesma Jr., Health Secretary Teodoro “Ted” Herbosa, and PDIC President and CEO Roberto Tan for alleged plunder and technical malversation over the transfer of the P60 billion excess PhilHealth funds.

The voided special provision of the 2024 GAA is what initially prompted the Department of Finance (DOF), then headed by Recto, to issue a circular that directed the transfer of P89.9 billion of PhilHealth funds to the National Treasury.

When the High Court issued its ruling, it only ordered the return of P60 billion since only P60 billion out of the P89.9 billion PhilHealth funds were transferred to the National Treasury. — JMA, GMA News