Twenty-three barangay officials are now facing criminal charges for anomalies related to the distribution of cash aid under the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).
Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo M. Año said on Monday that the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) has already filed 12 criminal cases against 23 barangay officials before the Department of Justice (DoJ)
He said four more cases are set to be filed in the next few days.
He added that 110 barangay officials are currently under “case build-up” after 318 complainants nationwide reported graft and corrupt practices against them.
Año assured that probes and case-build ups are being intensified to ensure that the barangay officials who had duped the impoverished will be jailed.
Año noted that most of the reported anomalies were committed by punong barangay, barangay kagawad, barangay treasurers, barangay secretaries, barangay employees, purok leaders and even social workers.
Cases for violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and RA 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act were filed by the PNP-CIDG against those barangay officials.
Recently, Año tasked the CIDG to investigate the graft and corrupt complaints against barangay officials.
On the other hand, barangay officials who are facing complaints, which are administrative in nature, will be investigated by the DILG.
“The PNP is now hard at work in pursuing the investigations and the filing of cases especially now that the government is set to release the second tranche of the SAP emergency subsidy for low-income families later this month,’’ he said.
DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan E. Malaya said the reported anomalies committed by the barangay officials ranged from splitting, falsification of the masterlist, getting a “cut” or “tara” from the SAP beneficiaries, among others. (Chito Chavez)