Two groups of electricity consumers filed graft and malversation charges against former President and now House Deputy Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyoefore the Office of the Ombudsman.

The National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms Inc. (NASECORE) and the Boses ng Konsyumer Alliance Inc. (BKAI) charged 96 counts of graft and 96 counts of malversation against Arroyo.

These complaints were related to the release of the P38.8 billion Malampaya Fund under her administration.

According to NASECORE President Pete Ilagan and BKAI President Roger Reyes on Sunday, the complaint filed against the former president was based on the recent Commission on Audit (COA) report that was completed in 2017 and detailed the disbursements of the fund.

The complainants insisted that Arroyo violated Presidential Decree No. 910, which was established by the Energy Development Board in 1976 and aimed to bolster and unite the government in the expansion and development of indigenous energy resources for economic growth.

The former president allegedly took advantage to violate the provisions of PD 910, where the fund was specifically released from 2016 to 2012.

Ilagan and Reyes confirmed that the P38.807 billion fund was spent on various projects that were not covered by PD 910, which prevented the country’s drive towards energy independence and inhibited economic growth.