Filtered By: Topstories
News

DOJ helpless vs pre-need firms, says Gonzalez


MANILA, Philippines - Despite President Arroyo's order to help victims of troubled pre-need firms get their money back, the Justice department said Wednesday it still couldn’t fully perform the task because of “loopholes in the law." Secretary Raul Gonzalez admitted the Department of Justice (DOJ) is helpless as pre-need firms have been using receivership status as a "refuge of sinners." "The problem, one of the most important problems, we must make receivership work. May butas yan [Receivership has so many loopholes]," Gonzalez said in an interview on dzXL radio. He also said they have been exploring other options, all of which he said will take time. One such option is to resort to attachment in criminal cases, but he said these proceedings take time, and the offenders may transfer their assets to dummy firms. "I have a legal team for this. Unang gagawin hanapin ang properties [The first thing to do is to locate the properties]," he added. Gonzalez took exception to claims by Parents Enabling Parents Coalition head Philip Piccio that the government is not serious in going after troubled pre-need firms. He said the pre-need mess was taken up Tuesday at the weekly Cabinet meeting. "I was grilled by the President for one hour. There are legal problems. That is why I was telling the Cabinet today most of these floundering preneed companies and other companies such as(those owned by Celso Jr.) De los Angeles ... receivership has been used as a refuge of sinners," he said. He said even condominium developers have resorted to receivership when they get into financial trouble, leaving buyers who paid in advance in the lurch. "These are the things we are trying to refine. We have to resort to certain situations. We have to devise ways and means maproteksyunan ang planholders [to protect the planholders]," Gonzalez said. He added, the government can never take property without due process, as the sheriff wouldn’t follow orders without the proper bonds. - GMANews.TV
LOADING CONTENT