Maria Barbara Padilla - mother of Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo

Maria Barbara Padilla de Resurreccion Hidalgo

As was customary among relatives in that era, Nicanor Padilla (my great grandfather) along with one of his sons, Sabino Padilla (my maternal grandfather who was a young boy at that time), visited his first cousin, Maria Barbara Padilla (daughter of Narciso Padilla and mother of Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo), at her home near San Sebastian Church. They were to have some merienda, which included hot chocolate among other treats. In the course of the tête-à-tête between the cousins, Sabino perceived that the servants may have forgotten to bring him his cup of hot chocolate. And so, Sabino quietly interrupted his Tia Maria to inform her that his cup of hot chocolate had not yet been served. Maria Barbara quickly rectified the situation and said to her cousin, Nicanor, "You should watch this son closely, as he will go far. He knows how to complain and, more importantly, who to complain to."

The proposed National Land Use Act (NLUA) seeks to forever ban the conversion of agricultural lands

Land banking key to future restrictive policies

By Charles E. Buban
Philippine Daily Inquirer

11:10 pm | Friday, March 1st, 2013

 0 New 0

UNPRODUCTIVE, underutilized, idle lands can be transformed into zones of progressive housing and residential communities.

The proposed National Land Use Act (NLUA)—Senate Bill No. 3091 that seeks to forever ban the conversion of agricultural lands—has started an interesting trend among property developers: intensified land-banking activities in recent months.

Land banking is a term that refers to purchasing parcels of land and “banking” them for future sale or development.

“It requires planning and patience. This is no longer new as the big ones have been engaging for years, in accumulating raw lands around the Philippines for future projects. Most developers, particularly the small and medium players, would rather preoccupy themselves with the development, sale and lease of their existing projects,” explained Gaspar De Guzman, sales and marketing business development officer of PA Alvarez Properties Development Corp. (PAAPDC).

But the trend has changed in just a few months. A lot of developers became deeply concerned when House Bill No. 6545 or the proposed National Land Use and Management Act was approved on third and final reading last September, and when President Aquino early this month certified as urgent the NLUA, which is currently pending on third reading in the Senate.

For ratification?

Once the Senate passes the bill on third and final reading, both chambers of Congress will tackle the bill in a bicameral conference committee to settle conflicting provisions. It will then be sent back to plenary for ratification before it can be transmitted to the President.

The entries that concern developers include the definition of “agricultural” lands as “protected areas” and the proposed law’s intention to place them under the Department of Agrarian Reform’s jurisdiction and be protected from conversion.

Another entry states that such agricultural lands will be banned from conversion while they are in the hands of landowners, but may be converted once they are awarded to agrarian beneficiaries.

“While the importance of preserving the country’s agricultural land and critical watersheds is crucial (as what the bill seeks to protect), the proposed law, if no amendment will be made, will definitely slow down subdivision projects particularly the socialized-housing boom in the countryside (where most of the lands have been classified as agricultural). Land banking now is thus one of the few viable options left for us,” said De Guzman whose company is now on the lookout for available  and potentially promising idle lands in several parts of Bulacan in the north and Batangas in the south.

Other locations

Because there are few available lands left within Metro Manila (besides, vertical development projects are more suitable and very much encouraged), De Guzman said small  and middle-market developers like PAAPDC have learned to move away from its base of operation (in its case, Laguna province) and look for other locations where there are huge potentials for expansion.

Aside from acquiring lands for future developments, De Guzman added that there are also options available, like entering into joint venture with the landowner.

This convenient partnership also works out well for both as the developer gets the land easily and at much less capital requirements, while on the other hand, the landowner is able to get profit from the idle property.

He said San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan is one example of a formerly purely agricultural area that has become progressive, and benefited from land conversions and joint ventures.

“Though largely agricultural, it has many idle lands that soon gave way to commercial developments and progressive residential communities. Local economy grew and thanks to wide, multilane arterial thoroughfare that connected the city to Metro Manila, San Jose del Monte and outlying areas became very accessible and have become one of the favorite targets of developers, especially those doing land banking and joint ventures,” De Guzman explained.

See more at: http://business.inquirer.net/110169/land-banking-key-to-future-restrictive-policies#sthash.sjZ4vCS3.dpuf

Political dynasties are here to stay

Unless the Supreme Court reverses its position on political dynasties, Congress will continue to flick the finger to the People by continuing to disregard the passage of an anti-political dynasty law.

SC asked to reverse position on political dynasties

By Jerome Aning
Philippine Daily Inquirer

9:13 am | Saturday, March 2nd, 2013

 0 New 0

MANILA, Philippines—Despite their initial setbacks in their crusade against political dynasties, a group led by former Vice President Teofisto Guingona Jr. has filed a motion for reconsideration asking the Supreme Court to reverse its position that it could not compel Congress to enact an antidynasty law.

In their 27-page motion filed Feb. 22, Guingona, along with Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption founding chair Dante Jimenez, lawyers Leonardo de Vera, Eduardo Bringas and Vicente Velasquez, and Raymundo Jarque, clarified that they were not asking the court to usurp the powers of Congress to make laws.

“[We] simply pray for a determination of whether Congress by inaction for the past 25 years has violated the Constitution and its duty as the representative of the people when it chose to downplay and disregard the importance of the antipolitical dynasty policy despite the provision in Article XIII, Section 1 of the Constitution, mandating it to give highest priority to enact measures of this nature,” the petitioners said.

Early this month, the high court dismissed the Guingona group’s petition, along with that of senatorial candidate Ricardo Penson, citing the principle of separation of powers and doctrine of political question. The justices also said that the antidynasty provision in the Constitution was not self-executory and needed an enabling law.

However, Guingona and his fellow petitioners insisted that the Constitution had already forbidden political dynasties and Congress only have to define what a political dynasty is.

“Congress does not have, Congress was not granted. Congress was not given the option, Congress was not given the discretion not to pass a law prohibiting political dynasty,” they said.

Instead of invoking the principle of separation of powers in refusing to compel Congress to enact an antidynasty law, the group said the justices could use the same principle to declare that the legislature had committed grave abuse of discretion.

“The act of the majority members of Congress in not passing the law is based on their personal bias as they themselves are part of the political dynasties. Clearly, there is grave abuse of discretion on their part,” they argued.

And when grave abuse of discretion is committed by the legislative or executive branches, the high court “should not use the doctrine of political question as a shield, to the detriment of the Filipino people from where all the branches of government derived their power in the first place,” they added.

They also said that if the high court found that there was indeed grave abuse discretion, there should be a commensurate move to give effect to its pronouncement and this move is to require Congress to follow the Constitution.

“This is not an encroachment or usurpation per se but rather the enforcement of the will of the People as mandated by the Constitution! This is true democracy!” they added.

- See more at: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/367531/sc-asked-to-reverse-position-on-political-dynasties#sthash.aNGjPtKR.dpuf

Mejorar la raza . . .

. . . a favorite expression of my Lolo Bino. A modern perspective that heralds from the past . . .

http://ahorasecreto.blogspot.com/2010/05/mejorar-la-raza-improving-race.html

Against the Law

The verdict is out. The Roman Catholic Church (at least the Visayan branch in Bacolod) has elected the path of irrelevance. In his column at the Philippine Daily Inquirer entitled "Which way for the Church?" (December 19, 2012), Randy David quotes Cardinal Tagle, Archbishop of Manila, as follows:

"In the message, we find a humble church, admitting that it does not understand everything that's happening in the world. That it's confused, that it has suffered, but it also admits its share in the wounds of society . . . Humility for the Church is not a strategy; it is the way of Jesus. It is how God manifested himself to us in Jesus, and loved us in the form of Christ crucified."

If only the rest of Cardinal Tagle's brethren would follow his lead, then the Church may recover some of its thoroughly eroded credibility in light of its despotic, over-bearing, one-dimensional and deceitful approach to the RH bill. Yet, the actions of the diocese of Bacolod, blessed by their bishop, Vicente Navarra, wreaks of "petulance" and "insolence" in the words of the editorial below. Petty, legalistic, fallacious, entitled, abusive, arrogant, hypocrites, modern day pharisees . . . all come to my mind.

It doesn't really matter whether or not their actions in Bacolod are "against the law". The Church's demeanor before and after the passage of the RH bill confirms what I had concluded many years ago (after I had some time to independently evaluate my Jesuit indoctrination). That is, the moral ascendancy that is so imperiously and cavalierly wielded by the Roman Catholic Church is undeserved. Yet, the poorer the country and the less educated its population, the greater the influence of the Roman Catholic Church. Conversely, the more prosperous the country and the more educated its population, the lesser the influence of the Roman Catholic Church. Do you now wonder why the Church is against the RH bill, which could, for the first time in Philippine history, reverse the trend of a runaway population of the uneducated or, from the Church's perspective, a waning of its influence in the Philippines. Enough with these great pretenders, who should finally be seen in the proper light--quite simply, irrelevant.

Philippine Daily Inquirer

10:59 pm | Thursday, February 28th, 2013

The decision of some members of the diocese of Bacolod, backed by their bishop, Vicente Navarra, to hang a giant election-related sign outside the San Sebastian Cathedral has again trained the spotlight on the Reproductive Health Law and the political role of the Catholic Church. The sign calls on the faithful to vote for six senatorial candidates and two partylist groups classified as “Team Buhay” and against seven candidates and four partylist groups they dubbed “Team Patay.”

The sign violates many laws, and should be taken down immediately.

It violates the election law, specifically the provision on “lawful election propaganda” in Commission on Elections Resolution No. 9615. “Posters made of cloth, paper, cardboard or any other material, whether framed or posted, [should have] an area not exceeding two feet (2’) by three feet (3’).” The Comelec has served notice to Bishop Navarra that the signs needed to be resized, but a lawyer for the diocese played for time by asking the Comelec whether the sign was in fact election propaganda. This tactic, to borrow a buzzword from the Corona impeachment trial, is mere “palusot.” The same Comelec resolution clearly defines “election campaign” and “partisan political activity” as “an act designed to promote or defeat a particular candidate or candidates to a public office,” such as “publishing or distributing campaign literature or materials designed to support or oppose the election of any candidate.” You do not need to be a lawyer to know that the sign clearly falls under these definitions.

The diocese has since cut the sign in two, separating the Team Buhay part from the Team Patay half—but this is not an act of compliance but, rather, of petulance, or even insolence, since each half is still clearly larger than the maximum allowed by the Comelec. Even if the diocese members responsible for the sign found it in their Christian hearts to abide by the unmistakable letter of the law and replaced it with signs measuring two feet by three, however, should the good bishop allow it? We hope not, because the content of the sign also violates other kinds of law.

It violates the moral law which governs all of us, whether Catholic or not, because it perpetuates a blatant lie, that the Reproductive Health Law promotes abortion. That is simply not true; every provision that could be misinterpreted as encouraging or allowing abortion has been removed from the law; indeed, the law reaffirms that abortion is illegal, and declares it state policy to be open to all methods of family planning that are, among other characteristics, “safe, legal, non-abortifacient.” So the sign reduces the complex debate over the controversial law to whether one agrees with the narrow Catholic view that the new measure promotes a generalized culture of death. The least the good bishop and his flock can do is acknowledge that many Catholic legislators voted for the new law precisely because they saw it as contributing to a culture of life—literally, since it will save many mothers and infants from an avoidable death.

It violates the law of self-preservation, because the diocese defends the posting of the sign as free speech—the very defense that the controversial reproductive-health activist Carlos Celdran invoked in the infamous Manila Cathedral case. While we believe that freedom of speech is a privileged right, the complainants in the “Damaso” case argued that offense to religious feelings trumped that privilege. Since Celdran has appealed his lower-court conviction to the Court of Appeals, he can now point to the Bacolod sign as an argument in his favor. To put it another way: What is to stop a parishioner in Bacolod from suing the administrators of the San Sebastian Cathedral, on the grounds that the sign offended his religious feelings?

It violates the law of equity. The lawyer for the diocese questioned the duty of the Comelec to enforce election laws, by saying it should start with “more glaring violations,” as the Inquirer report phrased it, of the candidates themselves. This betrays both a sense of entitlement, as though the diocese members behind the sign are exempt from the law, as well as a sense that if politics is dirty, the dirt must come from the politicians themselves, and certainly not from pious, church-going people.

What was it the Gospels taught all of us again, about the mote in our brother’s eye?

See more at: http://opinion.inquirer.net/47889/against-the-law#sthash.7BBf6wuN.dpuf

When the Mangal Marine Sanctuary "MMS") is established, the first joint project of Mangal and the Municipality of Mansalay will be to seed MMS with giant clams.

Giant clams: The answer to PHL’s dwindling fish supply?

Details

 

Category: Banking & Finance

Published on Thursday, 28 February 2013 19:42

Written by Zoilo ‘Bingo’ Dejaresco III

SCIENCE tells us that among the three nutrients—carbohydrates, fat and protein—many Filipinos are deficient in the third. This deficiency has a bad physiological impact on muscles and bones, as well as cell functioning.

For many years, fish served as the poor’s man source of protein, providing more than half of Filipinos’ protein needs. However, that no longer seems to be true.

In 2011 The Philippine Star reported that the country’s fisheries are about to collapse because many have plundered and abused the seas.

In 2003 some 28 kilograms of fish were available for every Filipino, but in 2010 it dropped to a woeful 10 kgs.

Our bodies are not equipped to store protein for the long term; it has to be used. In the past Juan de la Cruz needs to consume a lot of fish to keep himself healthy.

(To digress: Nonito “The Flash” Donaire eats nothing but fish while on training; Manny Pacquiao, though a herbivore or a vegetable eater, is as much of a carnivore as the lions in Africa. Guess who was named 2012’s “Boxer of the Year”?)

Science teachers tell us a teenage girl and boy needs 46 and 52 grams of protein, respectively, every day; the adult man and woman, 48 and 56 grams, respectively. The World Bank, aware that the Filipino population grows at 1.9 percent per annum, said the demand for fish will shoot up to 2 billion kgs by 2020. Where will Filipinos then get their protein, given that meat is not as healthy as fish?

Perhaps giant clams, also known as Tidacna Gigas (TG), could substitute for fish, since it does not only provide protein, but also selenium, zinc, calcium, iron and magnesium.

TG provides a lot of meat, since it can grow up to 4 feet and balloon up to 40 pounds. It is, however, among the most endangered of the 150 clam varieties in the world, and can be found only in the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia. How lucky can we get? Even better, they can propagate very fast, even in captivity. That’s why these clams are cultivated in the Bolinao Marine Laboratory in Pangasinan province.

TG is also very prolific creature—a hermaphrodite, in fact, since it contains both sperm and eggs and is capable of producing a million eggs at any one time.

In an experiment, a TG produced—hold your breath—14 million eggs, according to agri-fishery sources. Even better, a chemical called serotenin can be used to induce the clam’s valve to open and release sperm and eggs.

TG is said to enhance the life cycle of corals, which serve as sanctuaries for fish, and can attract many varieties of fish to where it lives. That’s a marine treasure, right there.

Is TG the new “gold of the sea,” a pleasant substitute for fish whose numbers are dwindling in the country? Can you imagine TG being grilled, stewed, dried or eaten raw? Can you imagine it being used in Philippine dishes like sinigang, adobo, tinola and paksiw? After all, TG is considered as an exotic delicacy among picky gourmands in Japan and France.

It must be noted, however, that men should go slow in eating TG, since it is a known aphrodisiac and can increase testosterone levels. If that happens, our population problems may worsen.

Kidding aside, we hope that we are planting the seeds of a new scientific approach to food sustenance in the face of dwindling food sources worldwide. Recently, an AFP C-160 cargo plane transported 200 giant clams from the Bolinao marine lab to Bohol province for propagation.

Obviously, we can no longer rely on fish. We cannot bang our heads against the wall while waiting for the return of the Great Fish. Propagating TG, therefore, represents science’s victory over despair.

Truly, success is infectious. Consider: 250 feet off the shores of Batangas province, very near the high-end seaside resort village of Pico de Loro of the Henry Sy Group, is a “clam garden” using the TG variety.

The smart Henry Sy, entrepreneur par excellance, must know something we ordinary folks are just beginning to understand.

Are we on our way to finding a long-term solution to our dwindling fish supply?

200 giant clams to be transported to Bohol

Details

 

Category: Agri-Commodities

Published on Wednesday, 20 February 2013 19:26

Written by Zaff Solmerin / Correspondent

 A fish swims above a giant clam at a coral reef in the waters of Bolinao town, Pangasinan province. 200 clams like the one in the photo are expected to be transported to Bohol province’s Bingag town soon.

THE local government unit (LGU) of Bolinao town in Pangasinan province is set to provide at least 200 giant clams for seeding in a marine protected area (MPA) in Bohol province’s Bingag town as part of a livelihood project, it was learned on Wednesday.

Known locally as taklobo, these clams are expected to attract other marine species by providing nutrition and shelter to small sea animals.

The Bohol provincial government regards the project as a way to reduce poverty and ensure food security in the province without sacrificing vital marine resources in protected areas.

Brig. Gen. Rolando Jungco, head of the Civil Relations Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), said the military has teamed up with the Bingag and Bolinao LGUs to implement the project, which not only aims to provide livelihood to people in some insurgency-free provinces like Bohol, but also to help promote and protect the environment. He added that the venture is in line with the Armed Forces’ Internal Peace and Security Plan (IPSP) Bayanihan.

“Actually, this is the main objective of the Bayanihan. After clearing an area from the influence of rebels, we have to support efforts of the government to [promote] economic development such as the introduction of sustainable livelihood projects for the people,” Jungco said.

He also said Armed Forces Chief of Staff Emmanuel Bautista allowed the use of military resources to help the Bohol provincial government implement the project.

AFP Spokesman Col. Arnulfo Marcelo Burgos Jr. said the military will provide manpower and equipment in transporting the giant clams from an ocean nursery in Bolinao.

“The giant clams will be flown via the Philippine Air Force’s C130 plane to Tagbilaran, Bohol, before they are transported onboard four M35 trucks to the MPA,” Burgos said.

“[Transporting the taklobo is crucial,] since any delay in the schedule will threaten the survival of [the] giant clams, [which] can only be transported [within] 11 hours,” he added.

“By providing a C130 plane [and] M35 trucks, the AFP will shorten the time needed for the swift transportation and seeding of the giant clams,” the spokesman said.

According to the spokesman, the AFP and the Bohol provincial government have been partners for many years, especially during the implementation of the IPSP, which was called the “Bohol Experience.”

“Through the partnership of the local government, private organizations and individuals, and other stakeholders, the anti-insurgency efforts of the AFP in Bohol was successful and accounted for the further improvement of tourism and economy of the province,” Burgos said.

Bautista lauded the provincial government and the people of Bohol for their contributions in the nationwide effort to save the environment and the marine resources of the country.

“The strong partnership we have with the government and people of Bohol remains to be one of the success stories of IPSP Bayanihan,” Bautista said.

“We are well aware of the adverse effects of environmental degradation [on] our communities, especially in coastal areas. This effort to transport 200 giant clams will further increase the volume of marine species in the seas of Bohol and promote biodiversity in the area,” he added.

Tama na! Sobra na!

Sukang-suka na kami sa inyo! Pinagsasaksakan pa ninyo ang mga anak ninyo sa mga ignorante! Si Jinggoy naman, nahuli na, nagpapapogi pa! Kunwari pa raw gusto niyang malaman saan naputa yung pera. Ignorante lang talaga yung maniniwala sa iyo. If you're not corrupt (if you really don't know how the funds were spent), then you are incompetent. Either way, your kind represents the most compelling reason to abolish the Senate.

Even before the COA disclosure, the following article "The Three Kings of UNA" hits the nail on the head. Bang! Bang! Bang! A must read before this May 2013 elections. God bless Virtual Vigilante!

http://getrealphilippines.com/blog/2013/02/the-three-kings-of-the-united-nationalist-alliance/

COA: 3 senators’ pork went to bogus NGO

JPE, Estrada, Revilla tied to P195-M scam

By Cynthia D. Balana, Norman Bordadora

Some P195 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of three incumbent senators and a former congressman went to a questionable nongovernment organization in 2011, according to a report of the Commission on Audit (COA).

The PDAF, a pork barrel that funds pet projects of members of Congress, is a known source of kickbacks for lawmakers. Yearly, a senator is entitled to P200 million in PDAF and a member of the House of Representatives, P70 million.

The audit report identified Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. and then Buhay Rep. Rene Velarde as the sources of the P206 million in PDAF for the Department of Agriculture that was released in several batches in 2009 and 2010.

Of the amount, P201 million was turned over by the agriculture department to ZNAC Rubber Estate Corp. (ZREC), a government-owned and -controlled corporation (GOCC), which in turn transferred P194.97 million to Pangkabuhayan Foundation Inc. (PFI).

Of the amount received by PFI, P74.69 million came from Enrile’s pork barrel, P106.7 million from Estrada’s, P9.7 million from Revilla’s and P3.88 million from Velarde’s, the COA said.

The COA report further said that the financial statements and income tax returns from 2006 to 2008 indicated that the government was PFI’s only source of funding.

Estrada seeks probe

Estrada confirmed that part of his PDAF went to the foundation during the Arroyo administration.

Estrada wants an investigation of how his PDAF was spent if indeed PFI was a bogus NGO.

Enrile withheld further comment until he had checked his records.

“I cannot make a statement. I will have to check records and facts,” he said in a short reply coursed through his media staff.

First time

“This is the first time I heard about ZNAC Rubber Corp. and Pangkabuhayan Foundation Inc.,” he added.

Revilla gave no comment. He sent word that he had yet to go through the records.

The COA said the offices of Enrile, Estrada, Revilla and Velarde all nominated the PFI as the beneficiary of the funds to implement its claimed livelihood projects.

Sought for comment, Enrile said this was the first time he heard of ZREC and PFI.

The ZREC is involved in commercial crop production, particularly rubber.

It operates a plantation on a 1,000-hectare property in Tampilisan, Zamboanga del Norte province. The ZREC uses the land owned by Zamboanga del Norte Agricultural College, under a usufruct agreement for 50 years.

The ZREC was formally incorporated and registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 17, 1984. In 2010, it was on the list of 36 “underperforming” GOCCs that Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez wanted abolished.

Fake documents

The COA report reiterated its previous recommendation to ZREC to require PFI to refund P162 million “due to fabricated documents and forged signatures” it submitted for the liquidation of funds received from ZREC.

The COA also recommended that ZREC inform Enrile et al. “that PFI should no longer be granted any fund assistance and have it blacklisted.”

Livelihood projects

State auditors raised doubts on the legal personality of the recipient nongovernment organization which claimed to have been implementing livelihood projects and programs in Ilocos Norte in Luzon; Bacolod City, Negros Occidental; Aklan and Iloilo in the Visayas; and Camiguin, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga City and Basilan in Mindanao.

Office address

The PFI listed its office address as No. 050 D&E Building on Roces Avenue corner Quezon Avenue in Quezon City. Its previous address was No. 31 Ignacio Avenue, North Susana Executive Village, Matandang Balara, Quezon City.

The COA report noted that PFI had five tax identification numbers (TIN) based on different documents submitted to various government agencies.

For example, PFI’s certificate of incorporation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had TIN 006-728-526 but a different TIN 229-081-506 was reflected in the general information sheet, which it also submitted to SEC.

In the PFI’s certificate of registration with the Bureau of Internal Revenue dated April 26, 2007, it had TIN 251-538-626-000 but used TIN 026-723-526 in its income tax return for 2006 to 2008. However, a copy of PFI’s purchase request obtained by auditors showed its TIN as 004-574-001.

Questionable

“Based on the information above, the validity and accuracy of the documents submitted by PFI were doubtful which also put to question its legal personality,” the COA report said.

COA auditors had asked ZREC to explain the discrepancies in the information when informed of the audit findings but the auditors were told that ZREC could no longer contact Petronila A. Balmaceda, PFI president, and that she had not replied to its letter dated Jan. 27, 2011.

In PFI’s income tax return (ITR) for 2007 and 2008, the report said PFI paid an identical amount of P17,500. PFI declared P1.75 million in total income tax payable because it was indicated in the ITR that its tax payments for the first three quarters amounted to P1,732,500, the report said.

“However, there was no deferred income tax or prepaid income tax of P1,732,500 and income tax payable of P1,750,000 reflected in the financial statements for CY 2007 and CY 2008 which cast doubt on the ITRs and financial statements submitted,” the COA said.

No liabilities

In 2007, PFI declared total assets of P5,668,594. However, there were no recorded liabilities, thus the fund balance was equal to the total assets.

“Likewise, total receipts and disbursements for CY 2007 amounted to P48,000,000 and P43,000,000, respectively, thus excess of receipts over disbursements amounted to P5,000,000. The above amounts were also the figures indicated in the CY 2008 financial statements.

“In short, the financial statements for CY 2007 and CY 2008 were the same,” the report said.

It said that from the financial statements for 2006 to 2008 submitted by PFI, there was no property, plant and equipment account, “thereby casting doubt as to how the foundation operated its business without any office equipment, furniture and fixtures which are essential in carrying out the day to day operations of a company.”

Unqualified for state funds

Neither was there a declaration of PFI’s other related business, if any, “prompting auditors to declare that from the start, PFI should not have qualified for entitlement as a recipient of government funds even if it was nominated by Senators Enrile, Estrada, Revilla and Congressman Velarde to implement the programs/projects.”

The report reiterated its previous recommendation to ZREC that it request PFI to justify “why the water pumps, hand tractors, composting facilities, planting materials and vegetable seeds were purchased from supplier which were very far from the location of the projects.”

Estrada said he didn’t know the people behind PFI but acknowledged that it was an organization accredited by the Department of Agriculture.

“It was the DA that recommended it (to be a beneficiary of my PDAF),” Estrada told the Inquirer.

Before Aquino administration

Estrada said this was “way back” before President Aquino took office in 2010.

“Our function is only to identify projects. The funds never passed through us. That’s the case for all of us senators,” Estrada said.

On the report that the NGO was bogus, Estrada said: “Now, I want to join the investigation… I want to know where the people’s money went.”

See more at: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/366117/coa-3-senators-pork-went-to-bogus-ngo#sthash.T4SPJaN6.dpuf