1 week ago
25
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
Philippine migration officials are looking into land acquisition by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), headed by Arnell Ignacio, which led to the release of P1.4 billion from government coffers without authorization from the OWWA Board of Trustees.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. dismissed Ignacio on the ground of loss of trust and confidence. He was Marcos’ first OWWA administrator, and was also deputy administrator of the agency under Rodrigo Duterte.
Ignacio has since been replaced by former Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Undersecretary Patricia Yvonne Caunan.
The OWWA Board of Trustees, chaired by DMW Secretary Hans Cacdac, is finalizing its initial investigation as it prepares to file a case against Ignacio and other OWWA officials who may have worked with him. The OWWA is the DMW’s attached agency.
Here’s what we know so far, based on the statements of Ignacio and Cacdac. The OWWA board has yet to respond to Rappler’s request for documents related to the investigation.
What was the transaction for?
The P1.4-billion land acquisition was for a halfway house project near Terminal 1 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
It would have functioned like a hotel, where overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) could stay in Manila if they needed a temporary shelter. Ignacio said he imagined it to be a “paradise” for OFWs.
When Ignacio broke his silence after his dismissal in a press conference on Friday, May 23, he claimed that there were talks about this project stretching all the way back to 2018, when he was OWWA deputy administrator, and Cacdac was administrator. He said it had been brought up in the Senate and the Department of Budget and Management.
Cacdac does not recall talks as far back as this. What he does recall is a board member bringing it up during the COVID-19 pandemic after observing over a million OFWs coming home and shouldering their own accommodations.
Then OWWA chief, Cacdac shut it down. He did not deem it practical to construct a hotel and employ personnel, since the OWWA could instead partner with the private hotel and accommodation sector, which could then provide professional services for OFWs.
The next time he heard about this idea was when Ignacio completed the deal in late 2024.
Was the deal brought up with the OWWA Board of Trustees?
The Board of Trustees is the policy-making body of the OWWA, based on the OWWA Charter, the law governing the agency. This ensures checks and balances with the administrator, though the administrator still sits on the board as its vice chairperson.
All OWWA programs, such as those for livelihood, disaster response, repatriation, and scholarships, are preceded by a board resolution.
Ignacio said in his press conference, “Dinala namin sa board bilang report ng OWWA.” (We brought [the deal] to the board as an OWWA report.)
While Ignacio said 2018 was the start of the talks, he did not specify when the project was brought to the present board.
According to Cacdac, the board found out about it only when the deed of absolute sale was finalized, and the title of the land had been transferred to the Republic of the Philippines around October 2024.
Ignacio has yet to release documentation that proves the board allowed him to purchase the land.
What were the red flags the OWWA board found in the transaction?
There were at least six matters related to the transaction that were not brought up with the board, according to Cacdac.
- The project itself
The proposal to construct a halfway house was not brought up with the board. The board could have given its input, pursuant to its authority under Section 22, paragraph (c) of the OWWA Charter, or Republic Act No. 10801.
- The conversion of funds to be able to purchase the land
Some P2.6 billion of the OWWA’s emergency repatriation funds (ERF) were converted to capital outlay funds under Ignacio’s watch. Since the ERF is specifically earmarked for repatriation expenses, the funds needed to be converted for the OWWA to buy land.
The board passes upon and approves the OWWA budget, which is sourced from the OWWA Trust Fund (from OFW contributions) and its allocation from the General Appropriations Act (from general taxpayers).
This particular P1.4 billion emanated from the GAA.
- The signing of the deed of absolute sale, and another deed of donation
The deed of absolute sale was worth P1.4 billion of real property, and was signed in September 2024. A smaller portion of the land was donated by the seller, which required a deed of donation. Neither of these went through the board.
“Nobody can force anyone to accept a donation. In the case of the government, that’s very important because the person donating might have a conflict of interest, might have a bad criminal record, so you always have the right to refuse a donation,” Cacdac told Rappler.
- The signing of an addendum covering the reimbursement of paid taxes
Based on Section 56 of the OWWA Charter, the agency is exempt from taxes.
According to the OWWA board investigation, the seller allegedly compelled the OWWA to pay local transfer taxes worth P36 million after the deed of absolute sale was already signed. The OWWA under Ignacio agreed, and signed an addendum for the taxes, which again was not authorized by the board.
At this point, around November 2024, Cacdac and other DMW officials had learned about the transaction from a “white paper.” Cacdac said there are three white papers that came out, and Rappler has only seen the one dated March 31, 2025, from “concerned OWWA employees,” following up on the complaint. We have yet to verify the original whistleblower which led to the board’s discovery of the transaction.
A few days after Cacdac and DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia said that the money should be refunded to the OWWA coffers, they received a call that it was returned.
- Non-disclosure of existing tenants of the land, and the seller still collecting rent after the sale
Sometime around March, the board discovered that there were tenants on the land that were still operating — a KFC branch and a Smart cellular tower.
The board called the attention of the seller’s attorney-in-fact, to ask about the rent. Since the deed of sale was finalized in September, then the tenants should have been paying rent to the government until March. The seller then transferred P1.4 million worth of rent to the government.
Cacdac was confused as to why the seller was still in the picture, collecting rent, even after the deal had been signed and the land already being owned by the Philippine government.
- Demolition of the building on the land
Apart from the KFC and cellular tower, there was also an existing building on the land with 52 condominium titles. The building was a significant part of the property valuation by the Land Bank of the Philippines — some P97 million. Ignacio allegedly had this building demolished without board approval.
“[The building] was declared in the deed of absolute sale. But who would have thought [Ignacio] would have it demolished? Perhaps because he felt that he could proceed with his master plan of having a halfway house. But nobody told him to do so,” said Cacdac.
“Whether or not there was actual pocketing of some amount of money is another thing. But, already, we found many red flags and enumerated them all to you,” he added.
Lingering questions
Based on the March 2025 white paper, the seller was a certain “Mr. Medina.” Cacdac said the seller is a realty development corporation and not a government official. We have yet to learn more about the seller and his affiliation with Ignacio.
The timing of Ignacio’s sacking also remains to be explained at this point. Cacdac said he first reported the matter to Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin in March, and then a month later, to President Marcos.
It took the latter half of May for Marcos to dismiss Ignacio, just days before he called on his entire Cabinet to file courtesy resignations in a bid to recalibrate his administration. – Rappler.com
