Swine scam investigation

Senate starts probe into livestock loan mess

MANILA, Philippines - Senators start Thursday an investigation into irregularities in a P4.26-billion swine scam involving the Quedan and Rural Credit Guarantee Corp. (Quedancor).

The first hearing on the Quedancor mess, scheduled at 10 a.m., stemmed from a Senate resolution filed by opposition Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who noted reports that part of the loan proceeds ended up in the administration's campaign kitty.

"It seems that multi-billion anomalies are becoming the hallmark of this administration to the detriment of our people," Lacson said in his resolution last April.

Quedancor launched a swine program in 2003 to assist farmers venturing into hog raising. Some P5 billion in funds went to the project, with
P3 billion coming from the Land Bank of the Philippines and P2 billion from Equitable-PCI Bank, and government bonds issued as collateral.

But the Commission on Audit's 2005 Annual Report found that P755.62 million in outstanding loan balance and P663.77 million in receivables was doubtful.

The COA findings also said the procurement of input supplies for Quedancor swine program amounting P1.67 billion during the year was not in accordance with government procurement procedures, and the high cost of credit was not beneficial to farmer beneficiaries.

COA also said some borrowers had denied they borrowed from Quedancor, and that the team leader or input suppliers sought their signatures in exchange for amounts ranging from P200 to P300.

Management also did not provide equal opportunity to contractors, leading to a monopoly by a group of input suppliers with interlocking sets of officers.

Records of the COA showed that a certain Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director of Metro Livestock Inc. is also a member of the Board of Directors of the BIRKS Agri-Livestock Corporation and a partner of the New Gold Agri-Vet Company.

His name and that of a director of BIRKS Corporation, also appear as former directors of the Silver Rock Resources Corporation.

Yet as of Dec. 31, 2005, Quedancor procured some P1.67 billion worth of input supplies under the swine program.

Of this amount, BIRKS, SRC and Metro Livestock got the biggest share of 35%, 29% and 23% respectively. Including the New Gold Rock, the four Input Suppliers acquired 87.53% or P1.46 billion of the total procurements.

Records showed the major suppliers have only P1 million authorized capital stock each and despite their minimal paid up capital they were given huge amounts of purchase orders.

"No track record was required from the Input Suppliers per QSP accreditation process. Even newly organized suppliers were able to participate in the program," Lacson said.

He added verification showed Quedancor accredited input suppliers who were not among those accredited by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) under its Swine Breeder Farm Accreditation Program (SBFAP).

Lacson also noted Malacañang in July 2004 transferred Quedancor from the Department of Agriculture to the Office of the President.

"Considering the said findings, the COA stated that the recoverability of said outstanding loans is deemed remote and that there is a likelihood that the government will lose from the said program,"
Lacson said.

On the other hand, lawyer Harry Roque Jr. said at least P600 million of missing funds may have funded the senatorial bids of seven administration bets in 2007.

Last April, Roque told DZBB, lawyer Harry Roque Jr said information he obtained from an informant in Quedancor said the unaccounted funds went to administration bets' election kitty.

"Ang sabi ng impormante, ang isa nakakuha ng P300 million, isa nakakuha ng P200 million at ang lima, P100 million ang nakuha galing sa kaban ng Quedancor (An informant said one got P300 million, one got P200 million and five got P100 million all from Quedancor)," Roque said without disclosing the identity of his informant.

"Nakikiusap ako sa natalo, sa mga P100 million lang ang nakuha. May nabigyan ng P300 million. Tanungin ninyo bakit P100 million lang ang nabigay sa inyo (I'd like to ask the losers why they got only P100 million, why don't they ask for an accounting when one of their teammates got P300 million)," he added.

Roque refused to name the candidates who received the respective amounts. When pressed to name who got how much, he would only say, "may nanalo, may natalo (some won, some lost)."

Those who ran and won under the administration's "Together Everyone Achieves More (TEAM) Unity" slate are Senators Joker Arroyo, Edgardo Angara, and Juan Miguel Zubiri.

Those who were defeated included Ralph Recto, Prospero Pichay Jr, Teresa Aquino-Oreta, Vicente Sotto III, Cesar Montano, Luis Singson, Michael Defensor, Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, and Vicente Magsaysay.

Roque pointed out that of the P2.25 billion funding for Quedancor's swine program, the Commission on Audit (COA) could only account for
P1.66 billion.

"Sabi ng informant, ang balance ibinuhos sa candidacy ng tumakbo sa admin (My informant said the balance went to the candidacy of those who ran under the administration banner)," Roque said.

Roque theorized the amount could have slipped past a ban on disbursing funds during the campaign period by having Quedancor making it appear the money came from its loans to farmers sourced from the Land Bank.

Former campaign staffs of Recto and Singson said they have no knowledge of the funds as they only handle the itinerary of the candidates. - GMANews.TV