Malapitans of Caloocan spend millions for lavish birthday party

Former Caloocan City Mayor Rey Malonzo accused First District Rep. Oca Malapitan of spending millions for the lavish celebration of his 70th birthday in a posh hotel in Parañaque City recently. 

“According to reliable sources, millions of pesos were spent  by the Malapitans in Oca's birthday celebration last June 14. For the venue and the food only, they spent P3 million. This exclude payments for the emcee and the high profile entertainers  like Zsa Zsa Padilla, Rey Valera, Paolo Santos and many more. Spending too much in a birthday party is not an issue if you're a private individual, but Oca is a congressman, while his son Along is the mayor of Caloocan wherein many of their constituents are poor. Are they such insensitive enough for the plight of the poor residents, apart from  it's also a violation of the ethical standards for public officials." ~Malonzo

According to Malanzo, based on their initial research, the Malapitans has no significant business venture to support a lavish lifestyle, relying primarily on their roles as public servants. This disparity between their public income and private expenditures has fueled further speculations and concerns among their constituents. 

The birthday celebration, held last June 14, was attended by around 1,000 guests, including barangay and city officials, priests, celebrities, businessmen, and top government officials.

It can be recalled that Oca Malapitan was accused of misusing his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) worth P8 million. Two years later, in 2015, the Office of the Ombudsman filed a criminal complaint for graft and corruption against Malapitan and six officials of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for approving the use of his PDAF for the programs of the Kalookan Assistance Council, Inc.

In 2016, he faced a plunder and graft complaints over allegedly overpriced birthday gift packages for senior citizens, involving some P49 million.

In 2021, another graft complaint was filed against him and the DepEd executives over the purchase of P320 million worth of alleged substandard smart tables for public school students. The complainants alleged that the acquisition was made without a public bidding, raising questions about the integrity of the procurement.

UnionBank Maintains Strong Position Among PH's Strongest and Most Valued Brands

“The growth in value of the most valuable Philippine brands echoes the positive sentiments of their nation’s economic outlook. Brands in the banking and real estate sectors benefited from strong post-pandemic economic rebound, improving financial literacy as well as continued urbanization and gentrification.” ~Brand Finance in their Report

In the Brand Directory 2024 report recently released by Brand Finance, UnionBank retained its position as part of the Top 10 Most Valuable and Strongest brands in the PHILIPPINES. This is UnionBank’s second consecutive year in this esteemed list since entering it in 2023. 

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For more information, visit the UnionBank website at www.unionbankph.com, or follow for updates on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, or Youtube.

For reference:

https://brandirectory.com/rankings/philippines/table