Pandemic Corruption: A Pharmally Primer

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

1. Pharmally Pharma was incorporated only in 2019 with P625k paid-up capital and 7 employees, no track record in gov’t procurement, but bagged P11.7 billion in contracts from 2020-2021, biggest under Bayanihan 1 & 2.

2. Since it is not a manufacturer, and has little capital, Pharmally acted as a middleman between government and PPE suppliers, including from China. Pharmally would sell items to government with a very high mark-up hence the overpricing allegations. Laway lang ang puhunan.

3. Pharmally the sold government face masks at P27 per unit when the original price for these face masks was at only P18 per unit. Government justifies this as an emergency procurement but disregards the fact that other suppliers were selling at a much lower price than Pharmally.

4. Pharmally sold government test kits that would expire in 6 months when government required these to have at least 2 years shelf-life. DOH allowed the procurement of expiring COVID test kits resulting in wastage and losses of P500M. Sana nag-free mass testing na lang sila.

5. Pharmally sold government testing kits from Singapore at P1.720 per unit. Government would buy the same test kits 2 months later at only P925 per unit. Pharmally’s mark-up as middleman was nearly 100%.

6. A Pharmally official admitted to changing the manufacturing date documentation of face shields to make it appear that they were not yet expiring. Warehouse personnel also testified that some face shields were substandard.

7. A Pharmally official admitted that they delivered face masks to PS-DBM even without a purchase order. This is highly irregular and cannot be justified even under the Bayanihan Act.

8. A Pharmally official admitted they entered into a joint venture with what could be considered a dummy company, in order to get government contracts. Business Beyond Limits was incorporated by the girlfriend of the Pharmally official. A Pharmally employee was also linked to BBL

9. Pharmally officials refuse to disclose how they were able to finance imports given that they had very little paid up capital. Huang Tzu Yen says he used life savings. Linconn Ong says they borrowed from Michael Yang. Yang says friends lent money. These are all vague answers.

10. PS-DBM justifies all these irregularities by invoking Bayanihan 1&2 where government can enter into negotiated contracts and skip procurement guidelines that protect the public from corruption. It appears that under Bayanihan, anything goes. No more safeguards vs corruption.

11. It is quite clear that there was misuse of government funds, overpricing and favors extended to an unqualified company. The big question is where did Pharmally’s funds really come from as this gives rise to questions of money laundering.

Written by Renato Reyes Jr

Duterte asks if face shields have expiration

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Paano daw mag-expire yung face shield tanong ni Duterte.

Palibhasa hindi marunong eh ipagpipilitan na expert siya to conclude that face shields don't expire.

All things expire kahit mga bullet proof glass will eventually deteriorate and lose its effectivity over time.

We are talking about items used in health and medical purposes, so mas lalong critical ang mga ito kahit facemasks, PPEs, thermometers, cotton buds, oxygen tank, etc. Lahat ng bagay ay bumibigay sa wear and tear kahit nakatago o hindi ginagamit

Gusto na ngang maging auditor, pati ba naman "expiration expert" papapel din?

Bakit tayo nagkaroon ng preaidente na super tanga at epal?

Ibalik ko tanong Kay Duterte, kung “hindi naman nag-expire” as he says, bakit kailangan pa palitan no Pharmally ang expiration date ng items? The point here is Pharmally committed fraud at the expense of taxpayers money, hence, putting into question their integirty and credibility as service provider. 

"Medical faceshield is different with the faceshields that we are using outside our homes. even before the pandemic medical faceshield is being used already for infection prevention purposes. medical faceshield was designed in accordance with the infection control guidelines. the foam attached in the forehead part is there for special and critical reasons. 

1. to prevent any particle entry from top down the face especially splashes 

2. for antifog mechanism so that medical staffs have clearer view of what they are doing

3. to at least prevent or absorb sweat, all for the safety of the healthcare workers. 

So, yeah expiration for medical faceshield is needed otherwise it may hinder its purpose.

Naway bago sila magbangayan about corruptions and walang namamatay sa expired faceshield, they could have at least talk about the importance of giving the right, good quality and not expired PPE apparels (coverall/hazmat suit, n95 mask, goggles, faceshield, gloves and etc) to our frontliners. These PPEs are very vital for them to function well and eventually stop the spread of covid inside the healthcare facilities. A little help and favor for the frontliners will really go a long way...

Ang totoong tanong is why the President of a nation defending a private company with unscrupulous practices, while criticizing the investigating body?

The issue is not actually about the expiration date but the admitted swindling of Pharmally of the government which is the agrieved party, and as president, Du30 should be pursuing the case for government and not aggressively acting to defend Phamally!

Every purchase especially of the government's, are dependent on the viability of the product and part of this is the term of serviceability or usefulness. No one in their right mind would buy anything expired.

THE ANSWER IS, AN EXPIRATION DATE IS THERE FOR A REASON, IT IS A SECURITY PROVISION TO MAKE A PRODUCT EFFECTIVE UNTIL SUCH TIME IT IS NO LONGER EFFECTIVE! AND THE EXPIRATION DATE IS THAT PARAMETER THAT SAYS IT IS NO LONGER EFFECTIVE AS A PRECAUTION.

In the first place, there should not even be a question of a face shield's expiration had he not required the public to use it sans scientific basis of its benefit but purely because of the anomalous transactions your men did with the favored Chinese (Michael Yang and Linconn Ong. 

Tanga eh, ano? Is the expiry date revision backed by a scientific study? Mr. President, do you understand the word CHEATING. Is that condonable in your kind of governance? Shut the F_CK up na lang, and think about the safety of your people. Sorry, the frontliners may not be your people as your people are those corrupt cheaters, siphoning the money from the coffers of the Philippines. Magkano?

Magkano ba kick back mo Mang Kanor?! Masyadong nagpapahalatang kasabwat. Hinay hinay lang sa pagtattanggol sa mga kawatan ng kaban ng bayan.

Again, why is the president lawyering for Pharmally? KASOSYO BA SIYA SA PHARMALLY? Kasi HINDI NORMAL ang reaksyon niya. 

Let their counsels, Atty. Fortun and Atty. Topacio do the talking and not you Mr. President Atty. Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Are you now also the corporate counsel of Pharmally? 

Kung ako ang presidente sa oras na ito at ganyan ang nalaman ko ... WALA NG IMBE-IMBESTIGASYON! I will personally call these Pharmally officials to my office and DEMAND A REFUND OF THE AMOUNT PAID TO THEM AND RETURN ALL THE SAID FACE SHIELDS.. EXPIRED OR NOT!  

Sadly, our president is more likely involved in this scam, so we should all be furious of what he is doing.

Kaya pa ba natin ito mga Ka-DDS? Ang hirap na po nito ipagtanggol. Tulungan na po kayo with all your misinformation and fake news. Isama pa ninyo mga Chinese-based troll friends ninyo.

Nokia APAC-Japan Head John Harrington to join Philippine Digital Convention 2021’s panel line-up

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Nokia’s Senior Vice President and Head of Asia-Pacific and Japan John Harrington is set to join the Philippine Digital Convention (PH Digicon) 2021 as one of its esteemed panelists during one of the event’s plenary sessions.

Carrying the theme “REVOLUTION,” the PH Digicon 2021 happening October 6 to 8 will highlight industry experts and thought leaders in various industries to talk about game-changing insights that could help companies revolutionize their organizations to thrive in this ever-changing business landscape.

Mr. Harrington is one of the many sought after global technology experts and thought leaders expected to grace the said digital convention. He will join several PLDT executives and global technology thought leaders during the event’s opening plenary session where they will talk about the revolutionary technologies of the present that will pave the way for the next digital revolution.

As SVP and Head of Asia-Pacific and Japan for Nokia, Mr. Harrington manages and oversees the company’s Customer Experience organization, business and operations in the region.

He has extensive expertise in technical sales, customer relationship management, and business development across Asia, Europe, and North America. He also has over 25 years of experience in the telecommunications industry.

In his career, Mr. Harrington took charge of one of Nokia’s largest accounts and one of the most advanced communications service providers globally, AT&T, to support its 4G enhancement, IoT deployment and 5G preparation.

Likewise, he has held various international leadership roles as part of the acquisition of the Alcatel-Lucent business, which focused on the latest advancements in wireless technology.

The Nokia executive started his career with Motorola as a system engineer for GSM/CDMA deployment after completing his Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering.

Now on its seventh iteration, the country’s most prestigious thought leadership event, the PH Digicon, will empower delegates as they embrace the revolutionary change and explore the possibilities of the new world of business.

The convention is poised to attract over 10,000 delegates composed of multi-national companies, global thought leaders and industry experts, C-level executives, and key decision-makers across all industries.

Nokia is a keystone sponsor of the PH Digicon 2021. Its Head of the Philippines, Carlos Reyes, will also join the event’s closing plenary session.

The registration for PH Digicon 2021 is free and open to the public. Register now at phdigicon2021.com

For more information on PH Digicon 2021, visit pldtenterpise.com/phdigicon2021.


COVER PHOTO: John Harrington, Nokia Senior Vice President and Head of Asia-Pacific and Japan