Plunder, graft raps eyed vs Ebdane et al. in road tax mess

Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago has asked the Senate to work for plunder and graft charges against former Public Works secretary and presidential aspirant Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. and members of the Road Board in connection with the alleged misuse of road user’s tax. Santiago, who sponsored Resolution 1413 on the floor Monday, called on Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez to investigate Ebdane and Road Board officials including its former head, Rodolfo Puno. Santiago sponsored the measure a day after Ebdane announced that he would join next year’s presidential race. The resolution also recommended the amendment or repeal of the Motor Vehicle User’s Charge (MVUC) Act, which will pave the way for the deposit of road user’s tax with the National Treasure and its inclusion in the national budget in order to assure legislative oversight. At present, the road user’s tax, which is part of a vehicle’s annual registration fee, is not included in the national budget. It is collected and deposited in four special trust accounts in the national treasury.

"Hotbed of corruption" The senator said the MVUC “has proved to be a hotbed of multibillion corruption" wherein funds intended for road maintenance were diverted to other government organizations. “The Road Tax Law is an abject and deadly failure, as proven by the virtual lack of drainage during the killer typhoon Ondoy and its successors in Metro Manila, Rizal, and other provinces listed as calamity areas," she said. Under the law, proceeds of the road user’s tax should be used for road maintenance and improvement of road drainage; installation of adequate and efficient traffic lights and road safety devices; and air pollution control. The road tax is the government’s third largest source of tax revenue after taxes collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC). From 2001 to 2009, the road fund amounted to P60.5 billion. Oversight The Santiago-sponsored resolution also seeks the creation of a Special Senate Oversight Committee on the road user’s tax “so that at least some form of legislative monitoring could be exercised over this particular giant pot of honey that has attracted so many busy bees." Santiago noted that there was lack of transparency in the management of the fund as confirmed by the Commission on Audit (COA). “The actual procedure followed by the Board in the selection of the projects from the Lists of Requested Projects could not however be verified and validated by COA, because of the refusal of the Road Board Secretariat to furnish without approval from the Chairman of the Board the copies of documents relative to the allocation of the MVUC funds and actual procedures they followed and criteria and basis for their selection," the resolution read. Santiago said the inquiry conducted by the economic affairs committee, which she heads, found last September 25 “at least prima facie evidence against the Road Board officials and Secretariat involved." Puno, brother of Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno, served as executive director of the Road Board from 2005 to 2008. The Road Board manages and utilizes the road fund, which comes from the MVUC Tax or Road Tax. Ebdane was dragged into the issue in his capacity as head of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). Scandals Santiago said that due to lack of transparency several “unconscionable scandals in the use of the road fund" were committed. Among these, she said, are the “inexplicable" transfer of P332.64 million from the Road Board’s Out-of-School Youth Serving Towards Economic Recovery (OYSTER) program to the Philippine National Police (PNP). Pointing out Puno’s relationship to the DILG chief, Santiago noted: “This seems to be the only explanation on why the Road Board OYSTER Program was transferred to the national police, which is under DILG." "This is a brazen violation of the Road Tax Law, Section 7, which provides that the Road Fund ‘shall be earmarked solely and used exclusively for road maintenance and the improvement of road drainage’," she added. In her speech, Santiago also quoted various newspaper reports on Puno’s alleged lavish lifestyle and his taste for yachts, expensive cars, luxury condominiums, movie stars and beauty queens. GMA News tried contacting Puno, but according to DILG undersecretary Brian Yamsuan he is out of the country. Ebdane meanwhile has kept silent about the accusation. - GMANews.TV