Ex-PAGCOR chair, 4 others get 100 years for graft

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May 10, 2025 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Former Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) chairman Efraim Genuino and four other former top officials of the state gaming firm have been sentenced to over 100 years of imprisonment for multiple counts of graft and malversation involving the alleged misuse of P50.05 million in agency funds.

In a 257-page decision promulgated yesterday, the Sandiganbayan Third Division found Genuino, former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office president and chief operating officer Rafael Francisco, former senior vice president for administration Rene Figueroa, former SVP for corporate communications services Edward King and former assistant vice president for the internal audit Valente Custodio guilty of five counts each of violating Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

They were also convicted of five counts of malversation of public funds under Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code.

For the graft charges, each was sentenced to six to 10 years in prison per count and perpetually disqualified from holding public office.

For malversation, the penalties imposed were: 10 to 17 years of imprisonment for two counts, six to 11 years for one count and reclusion perpetua – or 20 to 40 years – for the remaining two counts. They were also ordered to pay a total fine of P45.17 million.

Despite the cumulative sentences, they will not serve the entire period in prison. Under Article 70 of the Revised Penal Code, the maximum period of imprisonment for a felony in the Philippines is 40 years.

The court also ordered the temporary archiving of cases against former PCSO vice president for the accounting department Ester Hernandez, who remains at large. Her cases may be revived upon arrest or voluntary surrender.

In convicting Genuino and the other officials, the court ruled that the prosecution, led by the Office of the Ombudsman, sufficiently proved that they conspired in the irregular disbursement of P50.05 million in PCSO funds between 2005 and 2008.

These disbursements were allegedly used to purchase tarpaulins, shirts, caps and other promotional items, as well as fund activities of the BIDA Foundation, an organization founded by Genuino in 2003.

The court said these purchases did not undergo public bidding or proper processing by PAGCOR’s Procurement Department. Instead, the accused officials resorted to “shopping” or small-value procurement without valid justification.

“Most notably, there was a lack of public bidding. The huge amounts disbursed for BIDA members’ identification cards and pins (i.e., P2,315,625; P771,875 and P8,820,000) all exceeded the threshold amount that would warrant resort to alternative modes of procurement,” the Third Division’s decision read.

The Commission on Audit had flagged the disbursements, noting that the funds were not properly liquidated.

However, Genuino and his co-accused were acquitted of 14 other counts of graft and 15 counts of malversation related to separate transactions.

These include donations totaling P44.05 million to various private entities including BIDA Foundation; the purchase of P26.7 million worth of tickets for the 2008 film Baler, a co-production between Viva Communications and BIDA and tri-media advertisements for BIDA amounting to P63 million in 2008 to 2009.

The Sandiganbayan ruled that the prosecution failed to present sufficient evidence to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt in those specific cases.

The ombudsman earlier alleged that Genuino diverted PAGCOR funds to BIDA Foundation to support its bid for a seat as party-list in the House of Representatives during the May 2010 elections. BIDA, however, lost.