How Local Officials Steal Gov't Funds

BY MARCELO MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA 

 Mayor pockets up to 30% loans from bank 

 My politician friend told me that a corrupt mayor can get 20 percent to 30 percent of the loan his town or city obtained from government- run Land Bank of the Philippines and Development Bank of the Philippines. “If he wants the money immediately, he can get P20 million or 20% of the P100 million loans in advance from the (private) contractor,” he whispered to me not to divulge his name but to expose this perennial anomaly in public. But if the mayor wants a 30% or P30 million from the loan, then he should be the one to own the construction firm (of course though a dummy) if he wants the bigger chunks of the anomaly alias S.O.P (Standard Operation Procedure) after the project (construction of either the municipal hall, public market, or other public building) is completed and approved by the concerned government agencies. A hizzoner of another town, who asked for anonymity, told me that a hypothetical loan of P55 million entails an 8 percent S.O.P (psst spell as LOOT) for a scheming vice mayor and the conspiring nine members of the SB. “Ang 3 percent kay Vice Mayor, ang 5 percent pag-hati-hati-an ng mga konsehales,” he whispered to me. Susmariosep, that’s a mind blowing P1, 650,000 for the vice mayor and a staggering P305,555 for each of the dads. He told me this formula can buy the silence of everybody. He said in case there are grumblings and noises from the Vice Mayor, it means he either:1) Holds the proverbial empty bag; 2) Was given a pittance; or 3) Was an honest man that now gives a problem to the power-that-be there.
My other mayor-source told me before: “Mortz, don’t quote me but you can write how transactions (in relations to projects funded by the loan) are done in the LGU (local government unit). Aside from the monies divided by the boys (vice mayor and members of the SP), the mayor gets immediately the 20 percent or P10,120,000 of the projects (from the still hypothetical loan I mentioned) like for instance from the P50,600,000 million loan (P55 million loans minus P4,400,000 for the boys equals P50,600,000) if the mayor gives it to his favored contractor, or he gets 30 percent or P15,180,000 after the project is done if he used a dummy contractor.

 Angry Vice Mayor felt cheated in division of Loot 

 A vice mayor in a town in Pangasinan yaps and bellyaches about the “anomalous’’ transactions of the mayor he is going to challenge in next year’s mayoralty poll. “Why it is that checks that run to millions of pesos were released without their corresponding vouchers?” he told me. When I met the mayor I asked him why the vice mayor continued to assail the X million pesos loan his town contracted with the Land Bank of the Philippines. “Sa ibang bayan mayor tahimik lang ang vice mayor dahil may share siya na P1 million sa loan (In other town mayor, the vice mayor there just keeps mum after he was given his P1 million share from the loan),” I continued. The mayor retorted that he could not fathom why the vice mayor still denounces his transaction. “Binigyan ko naman ng P200 thousand na galing sa loan iyan. Kaya nga na-delay ang P100 thousand sa bawat councilors dahil inuna namin na mabuo iyong P200 thousand niya ( I gave him P200 thousand from the loan. That’s why the P100 thousand intended for each of the councilors has been delayed because we prioritized his P200 thousand),” the mayor told me. Now I know why the vice mayor goes “ballistic” every session of the council. He got a pittance of the loot in a transaction that can give 20% to 30% personal share to the mayor from favored private contractors. And I am talking here tens of million of pesos.

 Vice Mayor Lambasting his Mayor because he did not get a Cut

 A vice mayor of a city in Pangasinan complained to a radio station about the million of peso loan obtained by his mayor from a government bank. A former mayor told me to tell the city mayor that he could “silence” the whinings of the vice mayor he suspected to be making noise because he wants a share of the loan. “I did that to my vice mayor and his councilors and everybody was happy,” the former mayor said. I told what the former mayor told me to the city mayor’s man Friday The man Friday torpedoed the request of the former mayor. “Kahit mag-dadak-dak siya sa media (vice mayor),kahit singko sentimos hindi siya bibigyan ni mayor. Hindi ganoonsi mayor! (Despite his acrimony in the media, the bellyaching vice mayor would not get even a cent. Our mayor is not like that!)” he told me. 

 Mayor, Contractor Pocketed P2 M of P3 M Re-Gravelling of Road

 A ‘guilt-stricken” contractor relished my various expose’ in this column how government officials pocket public funds. “I read with interest how public monies are pocketed by public officials like those in DPWH, congressmen and mayors,” he told me. “Tell me your story when you conspired with them so God could pardon your sins,” I ribbed him. He told me that there was a P3 million fund for re-gravelling of road from the national government in a town in the 2nd Congressional District of Pangasinan. The mayor asked him how much he would give him in case he (mayor) asks for his service. “I give you P1 million.” The grateful town executive shook his hand for the conclusion of the negotiation. My contractor pal told me he got for himself the P1 million, while the remaining P1 million was deducted by P100 thousand for the municipal engineer who certified that the substandard project was above board, an average of P5 thousand to each of the barangay captains whose jurisdiction were beneficiaries of the project. “Iyong re-gravelling ang contractor spends only less than 30 percent of the total amount (It means less than P900 thousand from the P3 million budget- MCO),” he whispered to me.
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