Comelec chair wealthiest among heads of constitutional bodies

MANILA, Philippines — Commission on Elections chairperson Andres Bautista was the wealthiest among the heads of the five constitutional bodies of the government in 2016.

 

In his Statement of Assets Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN) submitted to the Office of the Ombudsman on May 2, Bautista declared a net worth of P176.3 million as of December 31, 2016. This was higher by P6 million than his net worth of P170.3 million in 2015.

 

Baustista declared total assets of P241.8 million, composed of real properties (three lots, one house and lot, seven condominium units and a studio-type residential unit) valued at P158.5 million and personal properties valued at P83.3-million.

 

Baustista's declared liabilities, meanwhile, amounted to P65.5 million in bank loans, personal loans and amortization payments.

 

The increase in Bautista's net worth was mainly due to appreciation of the value of some of his condominium units and his shares of stocks and bank deposits.

 

The government has five constitutional bodies created under the 1987 Constitution: the Comelec, Office of the Ombudsman, Commission on Human Rights and the Civil Service Commission.

 

These bodies are mandated to function independently from the three branches of the government.

 

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales, meanwhile, was the second richest among the five heads, with a declared net worth of P54.13 million in 2016 from P52.11 million in 2015.

 

Morales' wealth was up by P2 million due to a higher value of her personal properties amounting P34.49 million from P32.46 million in 2015. The ombudsman's personal properties include a car, a van, jewelry, books, furniture, antiques, silverware, cash and a provident fund.

 

The value of her real properties (two residential lots and one memorial lot), meanwhile, remained the same for 2016 and 2015 at P19.63 million.

 

Morales declared no liabilities in 2016 and 2015.

 

COA chairperson Michael Aguinaldo's net worth, meanwhile, went up by P4.6 million to P51.07 million in 2016 from P46.41 million in 2015.

 

As of the end of 2016, Aguinaldo's total assets amounted to P53.34 million while his total liabilities amounted to P2.27 million.

 

CSC chairperson Alicia Bala declared a net worth of P21.86 million for 2016 from P13.07 million in 2015.

 

Bala's total assets amounted to P22.03 million and her total liabilities to P171,300.

 

CHR chairperson Chito Gascon appeared to be the poorest among the commission heads with a net worth of P6.08 million, a slight increase from his net worth of P5.35 million in 2015.

 

Gascon declared total assets of P7.2 million and total liabilities of P1.12 million for 2016.