PING WANTS SENATE INQUIRY ON BEHEST LOANS, SWEETHEART DEALS OF GMA ADMIN
MANILA, AUGUST 16, 2011 (STAR) By Christina Mendez - Sen. Panfilo Lacson filed a resolution yesterday calling for a Senate inquiry into behest loans and similar sweetheart deals during the previous administration.
His resolution comes in the wake of the suicide of a lawyer from the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) who was allegedly pressured in connection with the ongoing investigations on behest loans.
Lacson also wants the Senate to look into "other similar bigger financial anomalies involving government banks and financial institutions," which he sees as clearly in breach of banking laws and various anti-corruption laws.
He cited the acquisition of a controlling interest by the government (DBP and the Land Bank of the Philippines) in 2009 in the Metro Rail Transit Corp. (MRT) worth $180 million or roughly P7.5 billion; alleged failed investments in Lehman Brothers; and two others which he did not mention in his resolution.
Lacson expressed concern over the tragic death of DBP assistant legal counsel Benjamin Pinpin.
"Let's find out (if there's) basis (to the) allegation attorney Pinpin (was driven to commit suicide). But the meat of the investigation is focused on the behest loans not only P660 million for Philex shares but also MRT Corp.'s $180 million. Here do you see one with $2 million paid-up capital that's able to get a loan of $180 million?" the senator said.
Lacson cited a P50-million loan used by Delta Ventures Resource Inc. (DVRI) to buy shares of Philex Mining Co. that DBP then owned at P11 per share.
Three weeks later the same shares were sold by DVRI at P21 per share to a third party.
Lacson noted the involvement of businessman Roberto Ongpin, who was also a director of Philex Mining during the time of the questioned transactions, as well as Ongpin's closeness with former first gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo.
"The DBP Charter contains provisions on confidentiality that control disclosure of information to third persons on financial transactions and, hence, creates a situation that allows the occurrence of these anomalous transactions to happen under a cloak of secrecy which constrains any investigation on these anomalies because it severely limits the right of the public to know and to hold public officials accountable," Lacson said in Resolution 553.
He said there is a need to strengthen and stabilize the banking industry and government financial institutions amid the alleged behest loans and sweetheart deals.
Lacson did not discount the possibility that Arroyo had a hand in the anomalous transactions.
"When we talk of Ashmore, there were talks before that if Ashmore is involved, the man behind is FG (first gentleman)," he said, adding the loan transactions were, to say the least, "questionable or anomalous."
Reports said Ongpin is a local partner and representative of the British banking giant Ashmore, with over $50 billion in assets under management globally.
Ongpin had denied allegations of being a front for his friend Arroyo and challenged critics to present evidence.
FROM THE DAILY INQUIRER
Aquino wants deeper probe into DBP lawyer's suicide By Christine O. Avendaño Philippine Daily Inquirer 11:12 pm | Tuesday, August 9th, 2011 8 share25 16
MANILA, Philippines—President Aquino has ordered a deeper probe into why documentation lawyer Benjamin Pinpin of the Development Bank of the Philippines killed himself amid an investigation into questionable transactions made in the bank under the previous Arroyo administration.
Pinpin was supposed to be one of the "prime" witnesses in a case that has since been filed by the bank against a businessman with close links to former First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo.
President Aquino said on Tuesday he has been briefed by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima on the case that the DBP recently filed against businessman and former trade minister Roberto Ongpin, who has been accused by the current DBP management of obtaining loans amounting to P660 million in 2009 from the DBP for his company Delta Ventures Resources Inc., even if the firm was undercapitalized.
"(Purisima) briefed me on what deals were under question, why they are under question and the process that the board undertook to unearth what actually happened," the President told reporters after visiting a Malampaya plant in Batangas City.
Aquino said he has asked officials to look into the suicide of DBP assistant legal counsel Benjamin Pinpin, who was pressured by the current DBP leadership to incriminate himself and former DBP officials in the alleged behest loans given to Ongpin's company.
Aquino said he wanted the circumstances leading to the suicide probed because Pinpin was described to him as "one of the initial witnesses, if not the prime witness, to what actually transpired."
"So I would wonder, kung nagi-guilty ka na may mali na nangyari, nung pag-reveal mo niyan, di dapat eh para lumuwang 'yong loob mo, pero hindi ganoon. So may inconsistency (So I would wonder, if you feel guilty about a wrong that has been done, shouldn't you feel better when you reveal it? But this was not the case. So there is an inconsistency). I would like to find out why there is an inconsistency," the Chief Executive told reporters.
President Aquino said he was awaiting a more extensive report from Purisima.
Pinpin was found dead last week in a hotel in Las Piñas City and police has ruled his death a suicide.
The President earlier asked Purisima to investigate whether the DBP board had become overzealous in its investigation of DBP officials behind the alleged behest loans to Ongpin.
Last week, DBP officials filed a case against Ongpin before the Office of the Ombudsman, alleging that he and former DBP president Rey David connived in getting the loan for Delta and thus, exposing the bank to "high lending risks."
Ongpin said in a statement that contrary to the claims of the current DBP board, Delta Ventures had over P1 billion in assets and that the DBP profited from the loan taken out by Delta, which has been settled.
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