MANILA: The government will investigate another Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam involving P1bn ($22.6m) and allegedly perpetrated by non-government organizations linked to businessman Godofredo Roque, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima revealed yesterday.
De Lima said a task force under the Inter-Agency Anti-Graft Coordinating Council (IAAGCC) will be assigned to investigate the charges against Roque by labour group Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino.
“I think Mr Roque, along with others who also operated their NGOs in amassing PDAF, will be covered by the investigation of the inter-agency task force,” De Lima said.
The task force would be composed of representatives of the Department of Justice, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Office of the Ombudsman, and Commission on Audit.
De Lima said Roque’s case would be treated separately from that of alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, which has been the focus of the NBI probe.
“As I have said many times, the coverage of the NBI probe is only Napoles, particularly NGOs related to her and therefore within the knowledge of our whistle-blowers,” she added.
The NBI has filed two batches of corruption cases against Napoles and several lawmakers linked to her before the Office of the Ombudsman.
De Lima said the IAAGCC probe would include lawmakers mentioned in the COA report.
The Philippine star
