That in the year 2006 the Asian Development Bank provided a grant and soft loan to the Philippine government to address the environmental concerns and livelihood programs of Mountain Province, particularly Barangay Maligcong. This multimillion peso - worth project was jointly implemented by Cordillera Highland Agricultural Resource Management Project (CHARMP), an NGO, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
That in the process of its implementation, corrupt practices (as stipulated below) were discovered by concerned residents of Barangay Maligcong. On April 2006, these concerned residents decided to come out and sign affidavits confirming that indeed there were gross violations of the law, specifically the Anti-graft Law.
The concerned citizens who submitted affidavits are the following:
1. Jefrey Pursen
2. Thomas Sadcopen
3. William Todcor
4. Agustin Choykawen
5. Rosita Cobsilen
6. Brigitt Imperial
7. Elisa Carlos
That in the same year, the complainants decided to report the case to the DENR authorities. They asked the help of the Northern Luzon Coalition of Good Governance (NLCGG) who provided the technical group to help the complainants determine the extent of the reforestation projects, the Social Action and Development Center (SADC), and a surveyor as part of a monitoring body against graft and corruption.
During the ocular inspection of the sites, contrary to the claim by the barangay captain and his cohorts including the DENR, the following were discovered and confirmed:
1) That areas planted were too small compared to the actual areas developed and planted. In Sitio Pokipok alone (one area out of eight project sites that were surveyed by Mr. John Escher from Switzerland), more or less 5 hectares were planted, but the DENR and the barangay counterpart declared the project area as more than 50 hectares. The other six project places - Angtungfaw, Pudlak, Lidchan, Matu-un, Filig, Chatar, and Locutan are all misdeclared and bloated as well.
2) Coffee plantation projects as claimed by the accused at sitio Lakipan and amfomotngor are nonexistent.
3) Nurseries were seen to be still containing thousands of withered and stunted pine seedlings. A total of 9 pine nurseries were discovered in all.
4) Bunkhouses and guardhouses were only makeshift shanties contrary to the project specification.
5) Already existing trails used by residents since time immemorial were declared as the 1 meter by 7 kilometer pathway connecting the different project sights.
6) Worst among the entire claim was that the naturally growing pine trees were declared as planted by the group of Herman Farnican.
The mountains of Maligcong do not need replanting; it only needs protection from illegal loggers and forest fires.
6) The livelihood component of the project, which is citrus - growing whereby the beneficiaries were given citrus seedlings to plant in their lands, were not successful as most of the seedlings were not distributed and allowed to die. The beneficiaries were never trained technically to take care of these special plants since they are only introduced species in the locality. The overall result of the livelihood component was a failure. Thomas Sadcopen, the caretaker of the citrus nursery, was never paid in full. Because of this, he filed an administrative case against the accused. Up to the present, no payment was made and no administrative sanctions were promulgated.
During the last phase of the project, two representatives of the Asian Development Bank came to Maligcong to see and verify the reforestation project, but it is getting dark during that time so it is impossible to make a practical and independent evaluation. The complainants met the ADB representatives and wanted to tell them that the project they were trying to evaluate was almost nonexistent. There was a discussion, but these foreigners were convinced beforehand that the project existed, as said by the barangay captain and the DENR.
That a complaint was submitted to the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) and it was never acted upon. They scheduled appointments with the complainants to thresh out the differences but none ever took place because they wanted to isolate the complainants and to deal with them individually.
That the complainants reported to the municipal government of Bontoc the abuses of the barangay captain of Maligcong, Mr. Herman Farnican. The complainants had an audience with the municipal council, but it resulted in exculpating Mr. Farnican. This was understandable since he was a member of the municipal council as ABC president and he was their colleague, notwithstanding the overwhelming evidence of graft and corruption against him. This prompted the complainants and the witnesses to seek redress from the DENR Regional Office in Baguio City.
That during those instances of meeting with the regional official headed by the Regional Director, Nicanor Sapla, we were ignored despite our open manifestations. Any succeeding attempts of communication through text messages and e-mails which were never answered.
That attempts were made to get the attention of the then DENR Secretary Mike Defensor through the intervention of Executive Secretary Silvestry Affable, but the instructions of the DENR secretary to the lower offices simply went to naught.
That as a result of much ado without nothing and a waste of the complainant’s time and money, the decision to file an administrative and criminal case was made to the ombudsman in the hope that the complainants will be heard. They wanted to clear matters and prove that there really existed a ghost project in Maligcong committed by the Barangay Captain Herman Farnican, DENR Director Nicanor Sapla, and their cohorts.
That the Ombudsman docketed the case and nothing happened from the filing of the case docket no. OMB-L-A-06-0378-E at the office of the Ombudsman in Manila.
That we made twelve trips to Manila from 2006 up to 2009 t to follow-up the case at the Office of the Ombudsman. We were aided by National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG) of the University of the Philippines and De La Salle University but still to no avail. A classic case of “justice delayed is justice denied.”
That in the process of collating our reports as of the present after five years of inaction by the government agencies concerned, the complainants began to suspect one another that maybe one or two of them were bought and now sided with the barangay captain and the DENR so that the case never prospered.
Additional references regarding the ghost projects:
1) NLCGG, through the president Pura Sumangil
2) SADC ,through Fr. Val Democ
3) Complainants, through William Todcor
4) UP - NCPAG
5) De La Salle Institute of Good Governance
6) Internet publications
Meddlers on the spending of government funds are frowned upon by the community, in fact some were harmed and others were threatened because they were critical of substandard project implementations. We had very bad experience with the community people in barrio maligcong Bontoc mountain province regarding our fight against the corruptions and misspent foreign funds .
I and my companions filed a case against our barrio chairman and members of the department of environment and natural resources for misappropriating five million pesos, a part of a multi- million loan-grant by the Asian development bank for reforestation project in maligcong bontoc mountain province. The purpose is to help in the reduction of the green house effect that is endangering the earth. But the people who are supposed to benefit from this project which include of course their future generation do not see the good side of its success. Their eyes are focused on the small amounts given to them and a few crumbs of bread distributed. They hated us for our exposure of the anomalies but are blind to the millions pocketed by these corrupt people.
They were willing to sign affidavits to support corruption even though the evidence of corruption is very clear[video/photos]. We brought our case to the Sangguniang Bayan of Bontoc for investigation but it was dismissed, the members of the municipal council including the vice mayor decided to support their colleague for political reasons and for indirect benefits they received. We were not satisfied with our municipal leaders so we elevated our case to the ombudsman, that was almost a year now yet there was no concrete action on the case. We followed it up personally, by emails and through notarized letters yet there was no viable answers, Philippine laws mandates a certain number of days to act on verified complaints submitted to them, yet there was no action until now, a classic example of justice delayed is justice denied.
They were willing to sign affidavits to support corruption even though the evidence of corruption is very clear[video/photos]. We brought our case to the Sangguniang Bayan of Bontoc for investigation but it was dismissed, the members of the municipal council including the vice mayor decided to support their colleague for political reasons and for indirect benefits they received. We were not satisfied with our municipal leaders so we elevated our case to the ombudsman, that was almost a year now yet there was no concrete action on the case. We followed it up personally, by emails and through notarized letters yet there was no viable answers, Philippine laws mandates a certain number of days to act on verified complaints submitted to them, yet there was no action until now, a classic example of justice delayed is justice denied.
Foreign aid continue to pour to the Philippines but not to the Filipinos, the documents tell the Benefactors everything is clean and well done but the physical evidence of corruptions are shouting at the top of their voice!. To those who have ears please listen to the silence of the igorots.
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8) Letters and etc.
(no subject)
Hello William,
I got your letter to COA. Kaya lang we need an addressee. We can't send it to just COA. Can you identify who it is precisely we should be writing to? I have no idea who.
Thanks!
Noel
-- PLEASE DO NOT PASS ON THIS EMAIL ADDRESS WITHOUT MY CONSENT. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANY FORM OF CHAIN MAIL TO THIS EMAIL ADDRESS.
Hello William,
Sorry for this very late email. I have not been in the office for three weeks, we've been out giving some training courses.
These are very good letters. Thank you for sending them. I think the best thing to is to send our letter with all three signatures on the original letters. Would you mind this: I will draft a letter, email it to you, then you can print it out, sign it along with the two others, then send the hard copy back to me. Address the new letter to the same person/s in the original letters that you sent. Is that okay?
Best regards,
Noel
Dear manuel,
Sending you additional document on the graft case we are following......tnx! here with are two documents attached.
dear partner, here is the address of the chairman,
Thanks again partner
OK, thanks very much partner! :-)
here is the address of the chairman na lang para ok ...thanks again for your help, hope I can repay you someday
w todcor |
Hello William,
Sorry for this very late email. I have not been in the office for three weeks, we've been out giving some training courses.
These are very good letters. Thank you for sending them. I think the best thing to is to send our letter with all three signatures on the original letters. Would you mind this: I will draft a letter, email it to you, then you can print it out, sign it along with the two others, then send the hard copy back to me. Address the new letter to the same person/s in the original letters that you sent. Is that okay?
Best regards,
Noel
Dear manuel,
Sending you additional document on the graft case we are following......tnx! here with are two documents attached.
dear partner, here is the address of the chairman,
Office of the Chairman
Tel. Nos. 931-9220; 931-9232 Fax No. 931-9223 Local Ext. Nos. 1111; 1003; 1006; 1011; 1012; 1013; 1014 |
Thanks again partner
DENR
Inbox
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show details 11/28/07
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Dear William,
Be informed that this morning a legal officer and a forester from the Central DENR has interviewed me regarding our joint complaint on reforestation. According to them their office was task by the ombudsman to investigate our complaints.
They wish to get your comments but I told them that you are in Baguio. According to them, we are given 30 days starting today to answer their questions regarding our complaints. I then gave your cellphone number as a means of contacting you or see them at the central DENR office. I tried to give them your e-mail address but they are not interested in it because their office is not connected to internet.
There is a question from them that I need to tell you; “sino ang tomotolong sa inyo sa pagprepare ng inyong complaints at saan niyo ginagawa ang pagprepare ng inyong complaints”. For the former question, I told them that no one except us three complainants and Thomas Sadcopen, and for the later question, I told them that we usually prepare our complaints at my house. With this questions, we need to have the same answer. The rest of the question is up to you but of course to the best interest of our complaints. They seem to be looking for a means of downgrading the weight of our complaints.
Jeffrey
william todcor
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11/29/07
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11/29/07
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Reply
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show details 11/29/07
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ok I will try thanks!
Masahuri Osaki, a Japanese national tried to help by informing ADB (Asian Development Bank) of the graft and corruption.(no result)
Prepared by:
William L. Todcor
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