PIA Press Release
2008/06/11
Davao City (11 June) -- The Pag-IBIG Fund did not spend P200 million to advertise its housing loan program, contrary to Senator Loren Legarda's claim, and what it did spend on advertising was legal, legitimate and advantageous to the Fund.
This was Pag-IBIG's Chief executive officer Romero Quimbo, the actual amount spent for the TV commercial is only P55 million.
"We do not know where the P200 million figure comes from," Quimbo said.
He also said that the advertising expenditure is "not only legitimate but necessary."
"As a corporation that provides housing loan services, Pag-IBIG has the right to produce TV commercials and other forms of advertisement that it may deem necessary to carry out its functions," he said.
"We have the most affordable housing loans in the country today, and we are duty bound to make our members aware of the new guidelines of the Pag-IBIG Housing Loan Program, and to "sell" the service to those who wish to buy homes through low interest loans. Just like banks, we have to advertise our housing loan services so that people will know about it," he added.
This is not the first time Pag-IBIG has advertised its housing loans on TV.
Quimbo revealed that Pag-IBIG's current advertising campaign has resulted in a marked growth in its housing loan program.
"For the first four months of 2008, we have already released over P9.9 billion worth of housing loans to over 19,000 members. That's almost double the total housing loans we released during the same period last year. We could not have achieved this level of growth had our members not heard about our reduced interest rates through out advertising campaign," he said.
"Our expenditure is only around 5% of the total loans we disbursed to borrowers as of April this year. It is illogical to say that any family has been deprived of shelter because of the money we spent on advertising. We have earmarked P30 billion for housing loans this year. Our advertising budget is entirely separate from that," he said.
Quimbo also argued that Pag-IBIG's advertising expenditure is very conservative compared to other businesses.
"On the average, a business spends 3 to 7 percent of its gross sales on advertising. As a rule companies spend as much money on advertising to make an impact and remain visible in the marketplace, without risking financial stability," he said.
He also defended Vice President Noli De Castro's appearance in the TV commercial.
"As chairman of our Board of Trustees, he speaks for Pag-IBIG in our commercials. Besides, most advertisers would pay through the nose to have an endorser like him-one of the most recognizable personalities in the Philippines, a respected broadcast journalist and a trusted public figure. We did not have to pay a single centavo for his endorsement." He said.
Private developers have also defender Pag-IBIG Fund, saying that its advertising campaign is necessary.
Ed Alunan, national president of the Subdivision and Housing Developers Association (SHDA), expressed his distress over the attacks on the housing ads and the accusations of premature electioneering.
"Interest rates have been lowered to all time lows, and SHDA has precisely been asking Vice President De Castro to launch awareness campaigns to spread the good news. What good are these benefits if the public is not aware? For a country with a housing backlog of 3.8 million, these ads are a necessity," he said.
Willie Tan, president of the Organization of Socialized Housing Developers of the Philippines (OSHDP), said that he sees nothing wrong with the advertisements.
"The availability of good financing schemes has boosted the housing industry and made homebuyers out of low-income families. Not advertising Pag-IBIG's excellent housing loan program, with the lowest interests in the market, is like lighting a candle and hiding it under a bushel," he said. (HDMF Manila/PIA)
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