House urged to probe PCSO’s P6-M Christmas party

MANILA, Philippines — Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Zarate urged the House of Representatives yesterday to investigate the lavish Christmas party held by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) that spent P6 million for the event.

Zarate issued a statement calling on Congress to probe the controversies that hound the PCSO under the leadership of chairman Jose Jorge Corpuz and general manager Alexander Balutan. 

Corpuz is a former police general while Balutan is a retired Marines major general.  

“While these PCSO officers and executives are fighting for their respective turfs, the indigents whom they are supposed to fully serve are suffering,” Zarate said, referring to the infighting between the camps of Balutan-Corpuz and PCSO board member Sandra Cam. 

It was Cam, a whistle-blower with close links to the country’s jueteng lords, who exposed the alleged extravagant Christmas party where PCSO leaders admitted spending P6 million in a five-star hotel in Mandaluyong for their more than 1,400 employees nationwide. 

“From the extravagant Christmas party celebration to the irregularities and alleged corruption in the small town lottery operations and the minuscule allotment of only P2.2 billion for the charity funds out of its P18 billion earnings – these issues are certainly not minor and should all instead be investigated,” Zarate said. 

“It was also Bayan Muna that exposed various anomalies in the PCSO in 2011, when (former) Arroyo administration officials were exposed to have used the funds for their own interests rather than that of the poor,” Zarate added. 

Cam’s appointment by President Duterte has triggered infighting between her and some officials of the agency. 

Balutan described Cam as a “loose cannon” after she made public statements criticizing the PCSO leadership. 

“Ms. Sandra Cam is now creating havoc at PCSO,” he said, warning her not to destroy the agency through unfounded allegations. 

“I do not want to go down to her level. She is a loose cannon. She is destroying PCSO under the Office of the President to which she now belongs, that we have been painstakingly building its credibility since day one last year,” the retired military official added. 

As soon as she assumed office, Cam held a press conference and told reporters she will cleanse PCSO of corruption, criticizing various activities such as the lavish Christmas party. 

Balutan decried the statements made by Cam, stressing that the employees deserved the party after a year of hard work. “PCSO’s growth is at a historic high today under the new leadership,” he said. 

“We might be hitting up to P51 billion or it could be more this year as compared to only more than P37 billion in 2016. It’s all because we intensified our President’s battle against illegal numbers game,” the PCSO official added. 

Balutan said they are open to any investigation and disputed Cam’s allegations of corruption in PCSO. “If she has evidence to show that we’re corrupt then file a case in court,” he said. 

“She’s now a member of the board and she should act like one. Be professional,” Balutan said.