The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has renewed its warning to local chief executives, government officials and the public against a certain group claiming to have the authority to appoint local officials for a supposed “revolutionary government”.
According to DILG OIC-Secretary Eduardo M Ano, the group called “People’s Congress” continues to peddle their claim that it has the authority to appoint officials who will compose the supposed revolutionary government that is about to be set up.
“This could well be the same group of scammers who had been identified earlier as they prey on unsuspecting public officials who have political ambitions,” Año reveals.
The DILG Chief says the group is going around towns and provinces with dubious claims of being the ones authorized by the Palace to appoint local executives who will take over the posts of the current elected officials once the supposed revolutionary government is set up.
One of the purported leaders of this group introduces himself as “Jose Roa Matias II”, who claims to be a lawyer and a relative of the President. Earlier, the DILG has tagged the said person as an impostor lawyer because his name is not included in the roster of lawyers of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
“The Philippine National Police had been alerted and they are tasked to investigate and look into the activities of these people. Our people should all be aware by now about the scams and that they should avoid these conmen at all cost,” he adds.
The DILG field offices are also tapped to increase their monitoring of the group involved in the scam to ensure that the number of victims will be lessened. According to the latest reports, the group goes around the provinces for their recruitment work and usually charges a certain amount for membership IDs and t-shirts.
Other members of the ‘people’s congress’ also pledge employment opportunities to their recruits to sustain their interest and raise their hope.
“We would like to reiterate that there is no truth about the so called revolutionary government. Let us learn to say no to these scammers and expose them in every possible way,” says Año.
He challenges barangay officials to always guard their turf accordingly to prevent the entry of these scammers.“Be on the lookout, protect your constituents from con artists. After all, you are our frontliners so you should be on guard at all times,” he adds.
