A DAY after the appointment of Roy Ferrer as acting Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) chief was made public, Malacañang on Tuesday, June 5, confirmed that agency head Celestina dela Serna has been "definitely fired" by President Rodrigo Duterte.
Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque Jr. said the President axed Dela Serna following the recommendation of an unnamed "senior" Palace official, who conducted the probe into her alleged excessive travels and allowances.
"Dela Serna was definitely fired. Well, I think in a past briefing, I did say that the Office of the President has investigated the many complaints against Dela Serna," Roque said in an interview in Seoul, Korea.
"I can confirm that a senior Palace official did the investigation. And I could confirm that a recommendation was made to fire her," he added.
On Monday, June 4, Malacañang released a document nominating PhilHealth board member Roy Ferrer as Dela Serna's replacement.
Ferrer's nomination came nearly a month after the President ordered an investigation into Dela Serna's supposed excessive travel expenses and and allowances in 2017, despite the agency's net loss of P8.92 billion the same year.
The Commission on Audit, in an April 18 memorandum, questioned Dela Serna for spending P627,293.064 for her travels, getting allowances worth P143,881, and receiving P152,000-per diem for meetings through video conferencing.
Roque said Duterte decided to fire Dela Serna because she clearly defied the President's goal to keep PhilHealth as a "completely honest" agency.
"The complaints against her -- her excess travel, lavish lifestyle by staying at hotels using taxpayers' money, and the P8.92-billion net loss of PhilHealth under her watch -- are unacceptable, because it's important to maintain the PhilHealth's economic viability," the Palace official said.
"She was fired because as you know, the President would want to implement universal health care, free check-up, and free medicines for all. If that's not economically viable, President Duterte's plan for a free check-up and free medicines will not be fulfilled," he added. (VoxPop Philippines)
