EJERCITO SEEKS PROBE OF ALLEGED 1.2-B CHOPPER DEAL ANOMALY

Senator Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito today filed Senate Resolution No. 1238, which seeks for the Blue Ribbon Committee to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the alleged anomalous procurement of twenty-one UH-1 combat helicopters by the Department of National Defense.

Ejercito earlier said that he wants the Senate to dig deeper on published news reports about the 'tailor-fitted' procurement of 21 refurbished Huey helicopters by DND for a 'favored bidder'. Issues raised on the antiquated quality of delivered and accepted parts of the purchased helicopters should also be investigated, he added.

"The Senate should check if any violations were made on the procurement law in the purchase of these 21 helicopters. We have to look into this deal because P1.2-billion worth of choppers that cannot be used and have obsolete parts are disadvantageous to the AFP Modernization Program," Ejercito said as Member of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security.