The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) warned the public and local government executives (LCE) on Wednesday against syndicates and crooks posing as the agency’s top officials “supposedly arranging for COVID-19 or emergency relief aid’’ in exchange for cash.
DILG Undersecretary and spokesman Jonathan Malaya issued the warning after the agency received reports that some local government units (LGUs) and regional and field offices received calls or text messages supposedly from senior DILG officials or their representatives demanding money to facilitate the release of financial assistance or any form of aid for their emergency and relief operations.
Last month, the DILG had issued a similar warning to the LGUs and the public regarding similar extortion incidents.
Malaya said his name was also used numerous times in these nefarious acts and said that he will never ask for cash from any “mayor, vice-mayor, or barangay captain in exchange for the public service provided by the DILG."
In a report to the DILG, Mayor Danilo M. Diamante of Tuburan, Cebu said he received repeated calls from someone who introduced himself as a DILG undersecretary who asked money supposedly to cover for the shipping of 1,500 cavans of rice that will be provided as assistance to his town.
Diamante said the caller instructed him to pin a certain “SB (Sangguniang Bayan)’’ member for alleged involvement in illegal drugs.
Malaya also disclosed having received similar reports from DILG CALABARZON Regional Director Ariel O. Iglesia, Mayor Rachel Ubana of Lopez, Quezon; Mayor Nacional V. Mercado of Maasin City, Southern Leyte; and Mayor Melina Requinto of Estancia, Iloilo.
He said he alerted the Philippine National Police – Crime Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) about this modus operandi. "They are already working double time to put these scammers behind bars.’’
He urged local officials and the public who will receive similar demands to immediately report the incident to the nearest police station.
Malaya said the DILG sends its official communications to the DILG regional and field offices and all LGUs via official channels and not through text messages or calls.
He advised the LGUs to always be cautious and verify from the DILG field offices first when dealing with any person claiming to be connected with the department.