Executive Secretary Ralph Recto – Photo from Ralph Recto/Facebook
A Duterte-allied group filed a plunder and technical malversation complaint against Executive Secretary Ralph Recto and former PhilHealth president Emmanuel Ledesma Jr. before the Office of the Ombudsman.
The Save the Philippines Coalition alleged that Recto and Ledesma unlawfully transferred P60 billion in PhilHealth reserve funds to the national treasury.
The 15-page complaint- affidavit seeks the dismissal of both officials for technical malversation, violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, the Anti-Plunder Act, and grave misconduct under RA 6713.
Complainants argued that the transfer was done “knowingly, willfully, maliciously, with evident bad faith, dishonesty and grave misconduct” and caused “great damage and prejudice to the government.”
The filing cited RA 7875, the National Health Insurance Act, and RA 11223, the Universal Health Care Act, noting that “no portion of the reserve fund or income thereof shall accrue to the general fund of the national government or to any of its agencies or instrumentalities.”
The complaint stemmed from Recto’s April 24, 2024 directive to remit P60 billion of unused PhilHealth subsidies to the treasury, a move later contested in the Supreme Court.
The high court on December 3, 2025, ordered the return of the P60 billion to PhilHealth and prohibited the transfer of the remaining P29.9 billion.
Recto welcomed the complaint as an opportunity to air his side and stressed his innocence, citing the opinion of four Supreme Court justices who exonerated him from criminal liability.
He noted that he acted “in good faith and in accordance with a direct mandate from Congress in ordering the remittance of PhilHealth’s unused funds.”
Recto pledged full cooperation with the Ombudsman during the preliminary investigation and expressed readiness to clarify the issues and debunk the allegations.
