Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Benjamin ‘Benhur’ Abalos Jr. cautioned the public that various con artists duped 8,000 individuals of an estimated P155 million through varying fraudulent schemes in the country from January to August this year.
He made the revelation based on the data provided by the Philippine National Police - Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG).
Part of the program to fight scammers is the signing of the memorandum of agreement (MOA) to support the commission’s campaign against financial scams, ‘particularly the agency's Anti-Scam and Illegal Taking of Investments Group (ASTIG)' between Abalos and Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairperson Emilio Aquino.
“This partnership is very timely as we need to educate the public about the fast-growing menace of investment frauds,” Abalos said.
“The SEC and DILG will collaborate to equip Filipinos with the knowledge of financial principles and on avoiding the traps and techniques of investment scams. These efforts will lead to early reporting and detection of any illegal financial schemes,’’ he added.
Aquino, for his part, stressed that the DILG, as overseer of local government operations, serves as the SEC’s “best link to investor education and protection” at the grassroots level.
“I am confident that the DILG, as purveyor of excellence in local governance, will be a key driving force to the network’s greater success,” said.