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- The billions of pesos were said to have been stolen in the span of one year.
- It is said that the mafia had been allegedly defrauding the corporation for the past several years.
Around Php15 billion of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) funds have allegedly been stolen by a “syndicate” in the agency in 2019 alone.
This is according to a former antifraud officer in the corporation who described it as the “crime of the year.”
With this, public figures and entertainment personalities can’t help but react to the theft happening during a pandemic.
Dawn Chang doesn’t seem to be surprised by the news as she tweeted “Business as usual,” when the allegations surfaced.
Business as usual. https://t.co/goqfFktrC0
— Dawn Chang (@thedawnchang) August 4, 2020
Kimpoy Feliciano, however, can’t help but cuss as he aired his disappointment in PhilHealth.
https://twitter.com/kimpoyfeliciano/status/1290623791870033920
“Greed at its finest,” It’s Showtime’s Anne Curtis tweeted.
GREED AT ITS FINEST. https://t.co/dC4SucVwPV
— Anne Curtis-Smith (@annecurtissmith) August 5, 2020
Barnaby Lo questioned why congressmen have yet to shut down PhilHealth like they did with ABS-CBN.
Sobrang daming kabalastugan sa Philhealth.
Hindi ba ipasasara ng magagaling nating congressman na nagpasara sa ABS-CBN? https://t.co/ohxNMek9va
— Barnaby Lo 吳宗鴻 (@barnabychuck) August 4, 2020
“Gusto ko magsabi ng masasamang mga words,” Vance Larena wrote.
https://twitter.com/vance_larena/status/1290639198047948801
Jason Abalos tweeted about how pitiful the Philippines’ current state is.
Woow!! kawawang pilipinas, nakakawalang pag asa. https://t.co/dwuitHPtUz
— jason abalos (@thejasonabalos) August 4, 2020
Hashtag Nikko Natividad aired his dismay through sarcasm, saying that he should just be a PhilHealth official to make sure that he can reach his dreams.
Ayoko na pala mag artista mabagal pera. Mag aply nalang akong opisyales sa philhealth sure maaabot ko lahat ng pangarap ko 😂😂
— NikkoDAKS (@Hashtag_nikko13) August 4, 2020
Nikki Valdez then said that if it wasn’t for the COVID-19 pandemic, the issue with PhilHeath wouldn’t be publicized.
Kung di pa pala nagkapandemya, hindi mauungkat yung sa Philhealth? Benepisyo NAMIN yan. Hindi binabayaran para lang kunin ninyo.
— NVG 🌸💚 (@nikkivaldez_) August 5, 2020
Tonette Jadaone shared an infographic of what the supposedly pocketed Php15 billion can do.
15 billion pesos para sa iilan vs 15 billion pesos para sa nakararami pic.twitter.com/N4FuQPXdZ5
— Toñet (@tonetjadaone) August 4, 2020
The situation drew even more reactions from netizens and other celebrities alike.
Lawyer Thorrsson Montes Keith told a Senate hearing on Tuesday that all members of PhilHealth’s executive committee make up the “mafia,” which had been allegedly defrauding the corporation for the past several years.
“My primary job as antifraud legal officer of PhilHealth is to spy on corrupt personnel … What I have discovered in PhilHealth may be called ‘crime of the year,’” said Keith, who quit his post on July 23.
“I believe, based on my investigation, that the (public) money that had been wasted or stolen was more or less P15 billion.”
According to an official, PhilHealth may collapse by 2022 if the government will not subsidize the corporation.
