Reward pork busters

Since transparency is a public demand on elected leaders and other government officials, private individuals must play a greater role in the accountability process, which is the objective of the writ of qui tam that retired Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna has proposed.

The judicial remedy allows any citizen to file a case on behalf of the government against a public official directly without passing through the Ombudsman or state prosecutors.

The writ can be applied against a person or company that cheats, deceives, or causes losses to government funds.

The proposal carries a reward system in which a successful prosecution entitles the petitioner to get a portion of recovered funds.

“One thing we assume is that if a public official has stolen but isn’t being charged, there’s nothing we can do,” Azcuna said.

The writ of qui tam began in the United Kingdom, and then the United States adopted it, too.

The US uses this legal option extensively through the False Claims Act, under which writs of qui tam are issued. From their experience, they’ve recovered a lot of stolen funds through the False Claims Act (FCA). But here, it didn’t happen. The senator’s proposal didn’t pass.

The FCA makes it illegal to knowingly submit false or fraudulent claims for payment to the federal government. It is the main tool for recovering money lost to fraud in government contracts and programs.

At President Abraham Lincoln’s prodding, Congress passed it in 1863 to combat profiteering by suppliers to the Union Army, which is why it is sometimes called the “Lincoln Law.”

The FCA now accounts for most fraud recoveries, with health care scams making up the largest share, followed by defense procurement and other contracting.

Private individuals, called relators, can file suit on the government’s behalf. The complaint is filed under seal while the Department of Justice investigates and decides whether to intervene.

If the government takes over the case, the relator typically receives 15 to 25 percent of the recovery; if the government declines and the relator proceeds alone, the share is typically 25 to 30 percent.

Azcuna said that the late Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago proposed a counterpart law in the country, but it failed to move in Congress for obvious reasons.

In a more diplomatic tone, the magistrate said: “Maybe Santiago’s colleagues didn’t fully get it, and maybe it wasn’t seen as super urgent at the time.”

He said that, with the unrelenting budget scandals, it’s time to rethink and revisit the idea of a possible citizen’s lawsuit to recover stolen public funds.

A writ of qui tam makes sure that thieves who steal from the country’s coffers have nowhere to run and that no one among them is safe.

Under the proposed scheme, even private citizens could file cases through what is known as a citizen suit. This could also mean that top-tier law firms would no longer need to seek clients actively.

Allowing ordinary citizens to file cases could also help prevent appointed officials from escaping accountability.

The veteran judge conceded, however, that the proposed measure has little chance of passing Congress, as its members would be in the direct line of fire under such a law.