BR cashes in investments to cover insurance reserve

BusinessWeek recently reported on the Auditor General’s findings that BR’s assets of about P4.4 billion were uninsured thus leaving the parastatal at high risk.

Responding to written enquiries this week, officials at the rail parastatal said funds in the insurance reserve were diverted towards the costs of reintroducing the passenger train some years ago. “BR’s insurance reserves were used to cover the shortfall in funds to purchase passenger trains with the hope that it would make some returns,” officials said in an emailed response.