Ronaldo Z. Concha Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the Kingdom have called on Philippine President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino to abolish the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), a discretionary fund in which Filipino legislators are allocated money to fund small projects. The program has been branded as the mother of all scams in the Philippines and several Filipino organizations have said it is time for the chief executive to act, cleanup and throw out the program, which is often abused by legislators. Worldwide Filipino Alliance Global EVP Arman Mulleem said OFWs denounced what he described as “the wanton corruption and systemic thievery permeating in the Philippine government.” “From the horrible legislators who were voted to serve the country with honor, dignity and pride, to the budget administrators entrusted to manage the peoples' financial resources, and the auditors who were entrusted with the task of ensuring that such resources are spent properly, every nook and cranny in the government is corrupt,” he said. OFW Yusuf Germino said he felt betrayed by the very people who should put public interest before their personal interests. “The nation has been played for a fool by its leaders and lawmakers. The corrupt should be suspended, jailed and made to return the money they stole.” Worldwide Filipino Alliance, Kaagapay ng Bawat OFW advocacy group and other individuals demanded the following be done as soon as possible: • Complete, irreversible and total abolition of the PDAF for all Senators and Representatives, including the Chief Executive. • Absolute transparency on how public funds, including the Special Purpose Fund (SPF), are being spent. • Comprehensive revamp and professionalization of the bureaucracy where only individuals of proven competency and honesty are appointed. • Prosecution and punishment of all persons — both private citizens and government officials regardless of position or political and family affiliation — who are involved in the multibillion Peso PDAF scam. The scam started when businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles was accused of channeling monies from the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of several senators and congressmen to her own personal accounts and the bank accounts of some legislators through various foundations. Napoles' company was alleged to have been tapped in ghost projects of the government, pegged in one report as totaling P10 billion worth of projects, and these ghost projects were allegedly used by lawmakers for kickbacks.
