Yanson-Lopez: Olivia Yanson covered for the real culprit
By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

After Olivia Yanson, matriarch for the family that runs Vallacar Transit Inc (VTI), parent company of the Ceres bus liner, earlier called on VTI chief financial officer Celina Yanson-Lopez to account for P380 million in missing funds, the company official responded by calling on her mother to “tell the unvarnished truth” about the funds.
According to a release put out yesterday, the company CFO stated, “Everyone knows who was responsible for these alleged unliquidated funds.”
Yanson-Lopez went on to point out, the matter originated last year, which she believes “precipitated the break between the ‘Yanson majority’ and her mother.”
“My mother got mad at me, together with the three of us—Ricky, Roy, and Emily—because  we wanted the guy responsible for these illicit withdrawals from the Manila Purchasing Office (MPO) to be criminally charged and sent to jail,” she explained. “When we discovered that this person was the one who orchestrated this big mess in cahoots with another, a lady cashier, the board wanted their heads.”
“My mother intervened and, out of pity, even wanted to pay for those funds which this guy allegedly took,” the CFO added.
She noted, the suspect had reportedly served the company for over two decades and her mother “covered for his misdeeds.”
Yanson-Lopez also noted the missing funds were revealed in an audit that showed they were withdrawn from the MPO and that the person in question was “the only one authorized to sign checks.” They had also reportedly left signed blank checks with Manila-based cashier Rowena Sarona, who currently faces charges before a Quezon City court.
“It is unfair to blame me for the missing funds, I am not the signatory of the MPO account,” the CFO affirmed. “The man responsible for the missing funds is not even being questioned—he  is being protected by my mother.”
“The blame is being passed on to me and I am being tried by public opinion despite evidence that shows otherwise,” she added.
Yanson-Lopez earlier accused VTI President Leo Rey Yanson of unlawful withdrawals amounting to “millions of pesos.” She claimed such actions are a violation of company policy, wherein such transactions require approval from the Board of Directors.
She said the withdrawals “endangered the financial stability of the company” and claimed it directly impacted company employees as the funds were reportedly earmarked for salary disbursements.
Yanson-Lopez said the alleged actions took place between June 1 and June 17 of this year and speculated there may have been earlier instances as well./DGB, WDJ

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