The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) does not need "Superman" to end corruption in its turf, Senate President Vicente Sotto III said on Wednesday.
Sotto rejected the statement made by PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Ricardo Morales that even the fictional superhero character cannot immediately solve the problems of fraud and alleged corruption in the state insurer.
"Tanggalin mo lahat ng corrupt, hindi kailangan si Superman (Remove all those corrupt, you don't need Superman!" Sotto said on Twitter.
Morales earlier conceded that there is a "systemic" problem with fraud in the PhilHealth but maintained that such activities cannot be resolved in a year.
Morales, a retired general, was appointed in PhilHealth in 2019 following the "ghost dialysis" controversy that put the agency and its officials in hot water.
Senators were not yet convinced that the PhilHealth chief was involved in the alleged irregularities and surmised that he was being manipulated and blindsided by those surrounding him.
They agreed, though, that Morales should take a medical leave so he could focus on recovering from his health condition. It was earlier disclosed that Morales was undergoing chemotherapy for lymphoma.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri pitched for acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua to lead the PhilHealth.
Zubiri said he believes that Chua, a former finance undersecretary, could prevent the anomalous transactions and make sure that funds of the state-run corporation are managed well.
"He is my choice. Kasi maraming nagsasabi, ‘Sino naman pwede nating ilagay diyan, ano, isang military ulit o isa pang doktor?’ (Because a lot of people have been asking, 'Who do we place there, another military man or a doctor?') Sabi ko, ang pinakamagandang ilagay bilang pinuno ng PhilHealth ay isang (I said, the best person to lead the PhilHealth is a) finance expert from the private sector or a finance expert even within the government system kung saan unquestionable po ang kanyang kredibilidad (who has an unquestionable credibility)," he said in an online interview with reporters Wednesday.
"Pinili ko siya (I chose him) because dati siyang (he was a) DOF undersecretary, he's now secretary of NEDA, or acting secretary, I never heard of any complaint when it comes to his credibility or his work ethic. Napakagaling ng kanyang work ethic (He has an excellent work ethic)."
"At numbers guy 'yan, nakikita niya pinakamaliit na pondo na nailalagay sa iba't ibang sektor ng ating budget so 'yan ang kailangan natin, sanay na sa budgeting (And he is a numbers guy, he sees even the smallest funds put into various sectors of our budget, so he is what we need, someone who is adept at budgeting)," he continued.
Zubiri pointed out, however, that Chua cannot solve the problems in PhilHealth alone. He shared the sentiment of his colleagues that the PhilHealth needs an overhaul of its leadership, specifically senior officials who have been involved in previous anomalies.