Graft Raps Filed vs. Gordon et al
Charges of Coalition of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt practices were filed against former SBMA Chairman and now Tourism Secretary Richard J. Gordon and other ex-SBMA officials for alleged illegal disbursement of government funds totaling almost P400 million after the Commission of Audit (COA) disallowed with finality Gordon's unliquidated expenses incurred during his administration.
The complaint was filed by Antonio P. Menodza, SBMA Internal Audit Service Department manager, before the Office of the Ombudsman Aniano Desierto in compliance with the state auditing law.
In his complaint-affidavit, Mendoza stressed the charges against Gordon and company which involved the total amount of P387 million, is only a part of the staggering P855 million in illegal disbursement of the respondent that was concluded with finality by COA as "disallowed" expenditures. The COA ruling is final and executory and under the law became a personal liability of the respondents.
The P855 million in disallowances, Mendoza explained, involved verified expenditures and illegal disbursement of public funds from 1992 to 1998.
Part of this were supposedly disbursed for personnel services amounting to P109 million in 1996; P135 million in 1994 and P142.8 million in 1995.
Charges together with Gordon
were former SBMA officials Julie Reyes, Treasurer; Manuel Quijano, Personnel
Officer; Leticia Doropan, Personnel Manager; Teresita Fallorina, Accountant
IV; and Armin Raquiel-Santos, Deputy Administrator for Finance.
Published in Tempo (May 13, 2001)
