Ombudsman upholds PS-DBM, Pharmally execs’ indictment

The Ombudsman has upheld the indictment of former Procurement Service-Department of Budget and Management officials and Pharmally executives on multiple counts of graft in relation to the alleged anomalous purchase of Covid-19 RT-PCR test kits worth over P4 billion.

The decision was in response to PS-DBM Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao’s motion for reconsideration, which Ombudsman Samuel Martires denied.

In an order dated 3 May, Martires affirmed filing three counts of graft against Lao and ex-DBM procurement group director and Overall Deputy Ombudsman Warren Rex Liong, DBM procurement management office Paul Jasper de Guzman, and Pharmally executives Mohit Dargani, Twinkle Dargani, Linconn Ong, Justine Garado and Huang Tzu Yen.

Martires also recommended the filing of separate graft charges against former PS-DBM executives Christine Marie Suntay, Webster Laureñana, August Ylagan, and Jasonmer Uayan, and Pharmally employee Krizle Mago.

The Ombudsman found the PS-DBM officials guilty of administrative charges and ordered their dismissal from the service, the forfeiture of their retirement benefits, and perpetual disqualification from the government service.

The recommendation of graft raps stemmed from the irregularities in the procurement by the PS-DBM of 51,400 units of RT-PCR test kits in 2020, amounting to P4.165 billion, to Pharmally.

Investigation revealed that the government, through the PS-DBM, had three deals with Pharmally, a startup firm with a capital of only P625,000, for medical supplies at the peak of Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. Despite being a startup, Pharmally managed to secure the lion’s share of the government deals.

In its August decision last year, the Ombudsman said the respondents’ concerted and conspirational acts enabled the award of a multi-billion-peso contract to Pharmally, notwithstanding the existence of other corporations that were financially and technically capable of supplying and delivering test kits at an equal or lower price.