Former Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Arnell Ignacio, along with two former deputy administrators and several others, will face graft and corruption charges over a P1.4-billion land transaction that allegedly bypassed the OWWA Board of Trustees, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said Tuesday.
DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac confirmed the charges will be filed with the Office of the Ombudsman within the week. Ignacio and his deputies were dismissed in May following the controversial land deal made in September 2024. He was succeeded by Patricia Yvonne Caunan, DMW Undersecretary for Policy and International Cooperation.
Cacdac said more than 10 individuals, including the sellers of the property, will be charged for violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. He emphasized that the transaction lacked board consultation and approval.
Ignacio defended the purchase, saying the 6,499-square-meter property near NAIA Terminal 1 was intended for a halfway house for returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs)—a proposal rejected by the current administration. Cacdac countered that OWWA funds should not be used for infrastructure that could be managed by the private sector during emergencies.
He clarified that only OWWA’s allocated budget—not the OFW trust fund—was used for the acquisition. Ignacio maintained that the transaction followed government procedures, including the issuance of a Special Allotment Release Order.
