Opposition Senator Leila de Lima on Wednesday, Nov. 3 questioned the Commission on Elections (Comelec) decision to hand over the contract on the delivery of the 2022 election paraphernalia to Dennis Uy’s F2 Logistics, a known supporter of President Duterte smacks of cronyism.

De Lima said Uy is clearly “not any ordinary campaign donor” likening him to Michael Yang—Duterte’s former economic adviser—who has been embroiled in the alleged anomalous contract between the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. and the Department of Budget and Management’s Procurement Services (DBM-PS).

“He is, like Michael Yang, Duterte's most favored crony. Proof of this status is the grant of major government contracts to Dennis Uy's companies, including the Malampaya oil and gas field contract,” De Lima lamented.

“Before Duterte became president, Dennis Uy was a minor player in big business, if not a total non-entity in major government projects. After Duterte became president, Dennis Uy has dominated not only in government contracts, but in Philippine big business in general,” she said.

“There is, therefore, reason to believe that Dennis Uy's interests are also Duterte's. The two are most likely business partners, or worse, Dennis Uy is Duterte's dummy in the plunder of public funds through the irregular acquisition of government contracts. This is crony capitalism at its worst,” she emphasized.

De Lima said Comelec’s assurances about the contract “are disappointing to say the least” saying the poll body should not have treated the business tycoon as just an ordinary campaign donor.

“He is more than that. For all intents and purposes, he represents Duterte’s interests, and that makes the Comelec award to his company a clear disregard of a conflict of interest case,” she said.

Getting ‘crown jewels’

Sen. Risa Hontiveros backed De Lima’s observation saying the Comelec’s awarding of the contract to Uy’s logistics firm “deserves closer scrutiny.”

Hontiveros said it is alarming that Uy has already snagged two of the nation’s “crown jewels”—Dito Telecommunity, the country’s third telecommunications franchise, and the Malampaya oil and gas field contract.

“It should be noted that ever since he donated to the President’s campaign, Dennis Uy has seen his business empire expand considerably in the last six years,” Hontiveros said.

“Isn't it conflict of interest for a Dennis Uy company to handle the logistics for the crucial 2022 elections? How do we assure different sectors that the contract will not result in possible undue influence vis a vis the conduct of the vote? How do we protect our electoral process from possible foreign influence, given Dennis Uy’s established links with China?” the lawmaker pointed out.

“There should always be watchdogs in place to ensure that nothing underhanded happens. The people have to stay vigilant,” she reiterated.