Pork funds accounted for—Gullas

Former congressman Eduardo Gullas said the P9 million he allocated to non-government organizations (NGOs) for anti-poverty programs during his term was fully accounted for.

In a statement, he said the livelihood projects were properly implemented.

“The livelihood projects included, among others, puto-cheese making, chocolate making, palitaw making, and distribution of livelihood books to farmers,” Gullas said.

A report from the Commission on Audit (COA) published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer yesterday listed Gullas and 48 other lawmakers as having allocated their pork barrel funds to bogus NGOs and suppliers.

Gullas, former congressman  of Cebu’s 1st district, said these projects benefited constituents in the first district who have “reaped the programs (he) implemented.”

Gullas said the NGOs  that carried out  the projects were  accredited by the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, an agency under the Office of the President.

“The projects funded by the PDAF were legitimate, fully accounted and undertaken by government-accredited NGOs,” Gullas said.

Also named  in the COA report was Rep. Gabriel Luis Quisimbing of Cebu’s 6th district, who supposedly released P3 million of his district’s PDAF to bogus NGOs.

The COA report said  P3 million went to the Sinag ng Kaunlaran at Pag-asa Foundation, which was “barely eight months in existence without any certified proof that it had implemented similar projects when it received the fund transfer.”

In its report, the COA said most of the NGOs granted pork barrel funds were among those endorsed by the legislators.

COA said 15  of the 21 NGOs were either unknown or couldn’t  be located at their addresses during an inspection in January last year.