The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has created ‘Task Force Cash Cow’ to investigate alleged irregularities in the disbursement of government funds for the country’s hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
NBI Director Melvin Matibag said the task force will examine the release and utilization of about ?6.7 billion in government funds reportedly funneled to the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC), a private entity that handled the staging of the regional sporting event.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Rotary Club of Manila’s weekly membership meeting at the Sheraton Manila Hotel in Newport World Resorts, Matibag said the task force is composed of personnel from the NBI’s Public Corruption Division, Special Action Unit, the Office of the Director and various field offices.
According to Matibag, the initial NBI inquiry showed that funds from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) were released to PHISGOC for the conduct of the SEA Games.
To trace how the funds were used, Matibag said he has sought the assistance of the Commission on Audit (COA) and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).
‘We are looking into BIR records. We will ask the assistance of COA and, of course, the Securities and Exchange Commission,’ Matibag said.
He noted that PHISGOC, being a corporation registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), should have submitted audited financial statements.
Matibag also said the NBI intends to question officials of the POC and the PSC as part of the investigation and expand the probe to include other funds allegedly received by PHISGOC.
The NBI chief confirmed that seven individuals, including PHISGOC chairman Ramon ‘Tats’ Suzara, chief financial officer Dexter Estacio and corporate secretary John Lester Buenconsejo, have been subpoenaed to appear before the bureau on Monday.
The investigation comes as the Office of the Ombudsman earlier announced it would review its 2021 resolution dismissing the criminal and administrative complaints filed against former Bases Conversion and Development Authority president, now Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon, and several others over the construction of sports facilities for the Southeast Asian Games.
The Ombudsman dismissed the complaints in December 2021 for insufficiency of evidence.