Vice Ganda (Image: Instagram/@praybeytbenjamin)
TV host Vice Ganda did not hold back in criticizing the alleged “thieves” in the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) who supposedly pocketed P15 billion from the state-run health insurance agency.
“Parusahan ang mga magnanakaw sa [PhilHealth.] Ikulong! PAGDUSAHIN (Punish the thieves in PhilHealth. Jail them! Make them suffer),” Vice declared via Twitter last Wednesday, Aug. 5.
The furious comedian also cursed the officials accused of corruption and said they didn’t deserve compassion.
“Pagsama samahin ang lahat ng laway ng mga may sakit at ipainom sa kanila,” Vice added. “Walang kompa-compassion sa mga demonyo!”
(Gather up all the salivas of sick persons and make them drink it. There should be no compassion for demons.)
Parusahan ang mga magnanakaw sa Philhealth. Ikulong! PAGDUSAHIN. Pakainin ng tae ang mga fotaenang yan! Pagsama samahin ang lahat ng laway ng mga may sakit at ipainom sa kanila. Walang kompa-compassion sa mga demonyo! Mga ulul! Sumakit tuloy ang ulo ko! Akin na ang Saridon!
— jose marie viceral (@vicegandako) August 5, 2020
The “It’s Showtime” host spoke up about the issue after whistleblower Thorrsson Montes Keith, the former antifraud legal officer of PhilHealth, claimed that around P15 billion was stolen by a “syndicate” inside the insurance corporation in 2019 alone, labeling it as the “crime of the year.”
Keith told a Senate hearing that every member of the corporation’s executive committee was a part of the “mafia,” which had allegedly been defrauding PhilHealth for several years.
However, the PhilHealth officials, who were also present at the hearing, immediately denied the accusations that they belonged to a mafia.
The state agency has since issued a statement reiterating that it “denies in strongest terms that its senior officials have ‘pocketed’ some P15 billion.”
The Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) previously tagged 36 PhilHealth officials for the supposed irregularities in the corporation. These officials are composed of 10 board members, 11 officials from the executive committee and other central office units, and 15 more from one of its regional offices.
PACC Commissioner Greco Belgica said complaints may be filed before the Office of the Ombudsman against the accused PhilHealth officials by next week. /ra
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