Only in the Philippines.

Two days before newly-elected President Noynoy Aquino assumed office, then PAGCOR chairman Efraim Genuino issued a check worth P21 Million big ones to Pagcor president and chief operating officer Rafael Francisco.

According to them, this was a blow-out for cops… WTF?!?

The Inquirer has a detailed report on the matter. According to the article, Former Pagcor senior vice president Edward F. King, who made the request for payment on June 25, said the check was meant to reimburse Genuino who paid for the food that was donated to policemen “for their activities and operations in line with their thrust to provide security to the population.”

But Pagcor spokesperson Jay Santiago said the new management could not believe that policemen ate that many cheeseburgers and fried chicken.

So, let’s do a small computation.

Each Big Mac meal is about P150. For 21M, that’s around 140,000 meals. The PNP only has around 130,000 police officers last I checked at their website.

That must be a big feast. The Aquino administration, IMHO, should make an example of this if it wants the public to believe in its promise to eradicate corruption.

Sigh.

(Photo above shows Chairman Genuino)