Malversation, plunder raps hit Recto
‘It cannot be emphasized enough that the actions of the executive and legislative officials lacked the necessary criminal intent or procedural irregularity.’
‘It cannot be emphasized enough that the actions of the executive and legislative officials lacked the necessary criminal intent or procedural irregularity.’
Finance Secretary Ralph Recto and several Cabinet members face plunder and malversation complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman over the alleged diversion of funds from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation in 2025.
The complaints were filed by former Department of Health adviser Dr. Tony Leachon who said the reallocation of funds harmed PhilHealth beneficiaries and hospitals that relied on government reimbursements.
Leachon said Recto’s order transferring P60 billion from PhilHealth to the National Treasury violated the Constitution.
He said PhilHealth accumulated a P356.6-billion deficit from 2023 to 2025, leaving hospitals unpaid and millions of Filipinos with limited access to healthcare.
Health reform advocates behind the complaint described the fund transfer as a “deliberate pattern of unconstitutional reallocation” that undermined public health and financial security.
“This is not merely a legal matter but a moral one,” Leachon said.
“The P60 billion could have saved lives, kept hospitals afloat, and brought dignity to families in despair. Instead, it was stolen from the sick and the poor,” he added.
Recto, however, dismissed the complaints as harassment and said the allegations should be “thrown out with great force.”
The then finance secretary cited the Supreme Court ruling on the issue, saying the tribunal found no unlawful or unconstitutional act in the transfer of funds.
In a lengthy Facebook post, Recto quoted Associate Justice Rodil Zalameda who said executive officials acted without criminal intent and merely carried out provisions of the 2024 General Appropriations Act.
“It cannot be emphasized enough that the actions of the executive and legislative officials lacked the necessary criminal intent or procedural irregularity,” Zalameda said in the ruling cited by Recto.
Recto accused Leachon of spreading falsehoods and claimed the doctor misunderstood how public expenditures work.
“This bitter man is again auditioning for a post in the next administration using a platform of lies,” Recto said, denying allegations that he personally benefited from the transferred funds.
Leachon, however, rejected Recto’s accusation, insisting the complaint was not politically motivated ahead of the 2028 elections.
“This is not harassment. This is not slander. This is the exercise of a citizen’s duty to defend the Constitution and the people’s right to health,” Leachon said.
He added that accountability and transparency are necessary to ensure public health funds are properly protected.
