CORRUPTION
THE House Quad Comm has uncovered a disturbing narrative of corruption where complicit government officials played a central role in facilitating illegal land acquisitions and enabling drug trafficking activities by foreign nationals.
At the center of the controversy is Empire 999 Realty Inc., a company owned by Chinese nationals Aedy T. Yang and Willie Ong, which allegedly exploited its connections to local officials to acquire vast landholdings and expand its illicit operations.
Empire 999 owned the warehouse in Mexico, Pampanga where authorities raided a P3.6-billion shabu shipment in 2023, further linking the company to drug syndicates.
During the committee’s 12th hearing on Wednesday, Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro underscored that dismissed Mexico, Pampanga Mayor Teddy Tumang knowingly supported Empire 999’s illegal acquisition of nine land titles beginning in 2016.
“Mayor Tumang knowingly supported the illegal acquisition of land by Aedy T. Yang and Willie Ong under Empire 999 in Mexico, Pampanga,” Luistro said.
Tumang claimed he only met Yang and Ong when they visited him at the Municipal Hall, but Quad Comm co-chair Joseph Stephen “Caraps” Paduano accused the former mayor of lying. The committee later cited Tumang for contempt.
Luistro pointed out that Tumang was already acquainted with the two Chinese nationals before his 2017 trip to Fujian, China, with Yang, and was aware of Yang’s suspicious activities and foreign nationality.
The committee discovered that nine land titles in Mexico, Pampanga, were transferred to Empire 999 under suspicious circumstances, including one previously owned by Tumang’s brother Architect Alex Tumang.
In his opening remarks, Quad Comm lead chair Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers revealed the broader implications of this corruption, linking it to national security threats.
“We have also seen how the money flow from this drug trade is being used to acquire landholdings, influence, and corrupt government officials and employees who conspire with the drug traders in offering protection and fake identities, that undermine the security of our country,” Barbers declared.
The committee connected Empire 999’s land acquisitions to violations of the Dangerous Drugs Act.
A shabu shipment found in its warehouse on September 24, 2023, raised concerns about proceeds from drug trafficking being funneled into real estate and other ventures to launder money.
“At least we can consider [Mayor Tumang] a person of interest with respect to the violation of the Dangerous Drugs Act,” Luistro stressed.
