AFPSLAI has not invested in any Legacy company

MANILA, Philippines - We wish to seek your assistance in publishing our clarification regarding the points raised by your columnist Mr. Cito Beltran in his column Ctalk, re “The scammed forces of the Philippines” (Page 16, March 30, 2009 issue).

The column alleged that the Armed Forces and Police Savings and Loan Association, Inc. (AFPSLAI) was involved in the so-called Legacy scam and that around P318 million of its funds were invested in the “Legacy group of scammers.”

We wish to clarify the point you raised that AFPSLAI is involved in the so-called Legacy scam and that around P318 million of its funds were invested in the “Legacy group of scammers.” To set the record straight, AFPSLAI does not have funds invested in the Legacy group or any of its subsidiaries and affiliates, nor did we invest any amount, let alone P318 million, of our funds in the Legacy group or any of its affiliates and subsidiaries. Our policy of protecting our members’ hard-earned savings is paramount, and all our investments are guided by this policy.

We do have members who were unfortunately victimized in the Legacy scam. In their individual capacity and own volition, some of our members obtained educational plans from the Scholarship Plan Phils, a wholly owned subsidiary of Legacy Group. We are now assisting all our affected member-planholders in filing their claims with the SEC. We would like to emphasize that AFPSLAI itself, never invested in any of the Legacy group’s business activities.

We also categorically deny the other points in Mr. Beltran’s column which were deduced from the erroneous assumption of our involvement in the Legacy scandal. We welcome any and all inquiries on this matter, if only to set the record straight.

We ask for your kind indulgence and assistance in publishing this clarification, in the interest of fairness and for the benefit of our members and your readers.

Please accept our warmest regards and gratitude for this opportunity as we look forward to seeing this clarification published in your respected newspaper. — RADM GEORGE T. UY AFP (Ret), President & CEO, AFPSLAI