Japanese firm donated rice to gov’t, not PAGCOR -- reports

 MANILA, Philippines -- The rice dole intended for typhoon victims in 2008 allegedly diverted to bolster the candidacies in the May elections of two sons of former Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chair Efraim Genuino was donated by the Japanese Aruze Corp. to the Philippine government.

According to documents from the Bureau of Customs and Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the 300 metric tons of rice from Aruze Corp. entered the country not as a personal donation to Genuino.

Of that 300 MT of rice, 49 MT was given to Pagcor while the rest went to the DSWD, according to officials of Pagcor and DSWD.

In an Aug. 5 article in the Philippine Daily Inquirer, Genuino had claimed that the 10,000 bags of rice, each weighing 30 kilograms, was “donated to me personally” by Aruze Corp. through the help of his “kumpare” who, he said, was a senior official of the Japanese company.

Genuino had said in Filipino: “It was me who donated the rice to Pagcor. Why would they accuse me of illegally distributing rice, which I actually owned?”

However, the documents showed the rice entered the country as a “food donation” to the Philippine government for the victims of Typhoon "Frank," which slammed Metro Manila and parts of Southern and Central Luzon in late June 2008.

The July 8, 2008 import permit that was granted to the DSWD said: “This shipment is donated by Aruze Corp. of Japan to the Government of the Philippines through the Department of Social Welfare and Development intended for relief and rehabilitation of calamity affected areas.”

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20100815-286971/Japanese-firm-donated-rice-to-govt-not-PAGCOR----reports

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