The Commission on Audit (COA) discovered some questionable transactions and projects of Senator Kiko Pangilinan that were funded using his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or pork barrel from 2007 to 2009.
The 462-page special report of COA showed that several Quezon City-based projects partly funded with Pangilinan’s PDAF do not have documentary support and have been transacted questionably.
According to report, P7.3 million from Pangilinan’s PDAF were used for the procurement of “barangay office equipment” for at least 17 barangays in Quezon City, while the other funds came from former Sen. Ramon Magsaysay Jr. (P100,000) and former Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman (P904,000).
The procurement of the said project was not supported by proper documents, the purchase of the materials lacked official receipts or proofs of bidding.
The report also showed that another P1.063 million of Pangilinan’s pork was used to purchase the needs of a barangay in Quezon City such as an Apple Macbook laptop, a Nikon DSLR camera, a laminating machine, Sharp DVD player, Sony digital cameras, 19″ Samsung LCD monitor among others.
Upon auditing, the COA discovered that the gadgets were unaccounted, missing or defective, as seen in photographs of the mentioned items.
COA also found that Pangilinan paid Superjie Trading, a supplier which considered “not legally nor physically existing,” using his PDAF. While business was registered from 2008 to 2009, it operated without a business permit.
The senator also gave P2-million for construction projects for barangay operations, but such operations were neither announced to the public for the sake of transparency nor proven with project documents such as invitations to bid, receipts and contract agreements.
Pangilinan also spent P599,000 for a feeding program and distribution of medicines that possibly have not occurred.
“These were not supported with … bid documents, project plans, or any document authorizing the conduct of activities and proof of implementation indicating the venue, activities undertaken, beneficiaries, pictures of activities, participating partners, date conducted,” the COA said.
A livelihood project of the senator in Batasan Hills also had no proof of implementation.
Pangilinan’s wife, actress Sharon Cuneta denied the allegation and said that her husband’s pork barrel was “well-accounted for, napunta sa lahat dapat puntahan”.
Source: PhilStar
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