Marcos denies easing Maharlika Fund IRR to favor newly appointed CEO

President Marcos has denied allegations that the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) Act were relaxed to accommodate finance expert Rafael Consing Jr.

Marcos said this following criticisms that the MIF’s IRR was relaxed to accommodate Consing as the latter would not have been eligible to be the Maharlika Investment Corporation (MIC) ‘s president and CEO had the IRR not been tweaked.

In an interview with the media on Nov. 17, the President argued that they made the fund manager selection stricter.

“I don’t know where we relaxed anything. Quite the contrary, hinigpitan natin (we made it stricter),” he said.

“More or less, there are several – there are [a] couple of other things, but basically, it was the powers of the board that we changed… I do not want political forces to interfere with [the] financial decisions of the investment fund,” he added.

Consing lacked the initial academic requirements of having a master’s or advanced degree in finance-related fields as he only earned his bachelor’s degree in political science in 1989 from De la Salle University. This requirement was removed in the revised IRR released last week.

In a Facebook post, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) described Consing as an “accomplished and results-driven” individual with a “profound depth of experience” in corporate finance.

The MIF Act also prohibits appointing officials with pending cases related to fraud, money laundering, tax evasion, or misuse of funds, and those convicted of an offense punishable by imprisonment for a period exceeding six years.

Filipinos online pointed to a certain case where Consing and his mother sold a lot to a company in Cavite for P13.4 million in 1997 but were later found to not have a valid land title. Consing has clarified that the cases against him have been dismissed.

Government’s role

President Marcos reiterated his position to let the board decide as much as possible, even with the choice of people and the organization’s structure.

“But as much as possible, on the day-to-day workings of the fund, we leave it to the board. We leave it to the managers,” he said.

Marcos also explained that the government has to get involved since it has an interest there, referring to him having the power to reject or accept nominees to MIC board positions.

“We hold the controlling interest; we are the government,” he said.

“Think of a corporation, yung pinakamalaking kapital – the one with the largest capital interest is the one that has the most votes. So, that’s what happens,” he added.