Former Caloocan City Mayor Rey Malonzo accused First District Rep. Oca Malapitan of spending millions for the lavish celebration of his 70th birthday in a posh hotel in Parañaque City recently.
“According to reliable sources, millions of pesos were spent by the Malapitans in Oca's birthday celebration last June 14. For the venue and the food only, they spent P3 million. This exclude payments for the emcee and the high profile entertainers like Zsa Zsa Padilla, Rey Valera, Paolo Santos, and many more,” Malonzo said.
"Spending too much in a birthday party is not an issue if you're a private individual, but Oca is a congressman, while his son Along is the mayor of Caloocan wherein many of their constituents are poor. Are they such insensitive enough for the plight of the poor residents, apart from it's also a violation of the ethical standards for public officials," Malonzo added.
According to Malanzo, based on their initial research, the Malapitans has no significant business venture to support a lavish lifestyle, relying primarily on their roles as public servants. This disparity between their public income and private expenditures has fueled further speculations and concerns among their constituents.
The birthday celebration, held last 14 June, was attended by around 1,000 guests, including barangay and city officials, priests, celebrities, businessmen, and top government officials like House Speaker Martin Romualdez, Senators Imee Marcos, Bong Go, Francis Tolentino and JV Ejercito.
It can be recalled that Oca Malapitan was accused of misusing his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) worth P8 million. Two years later, in 2015, the Office of the Ombudsman filed a criminal complaint for graft and corruption against Malapitan and six officials of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for approving the use of his PDAF for the programs of the Kalookan Assistance Council, Inc.
In 2016, he faced a plunder and graft complaints over allegedly overpriced birthday gift packages for senior citizens, involving some P49 million.
In 2021, another graft complaint was filed against him and the DepEd executives over the purchase of P320 million worth of alleged substandard smart tables for public school students. The complainants alleged that the acquisition was made without public bidding, raising questions about the integrity of the procurement.
