đź“· In December 2024, a press conference took place at the Manila Polo Club, where the spotlight was on Digital 8’s recent acquisition of the contract to broadcast the lotto draw on IBC. Among the attendees was Jay Ruiz, whose nameplate identified him as the Digital 8 Inc. President.Â
Acting Communications Secretary Jay Ruiz, the alleged former president of Digital 8 Inc., denied owning the company and declined to publicly disclose its owner following its high-profile contract to broadcast the Philippine lotto draw on IBC in December 2024.
Ruiz refuted the allegations of his ownership of the company during a Palace briefing on Tuesday, March 4. However, he was spotted at a joint conference in December 2024 alongside the PCSO and IBC at the Manila Polo Club, where a nameplate identified him as the president of the media firm.
“I don’t own a share; I’m not a stockholder; I am not an owner of Digital 8,” Ruiz said.
“I was an authorized representative to represent the company in the joint venture agreement between IBC-13, Digi8, and PCSO. I never owned that company,” he added.
The PCO Secretary said that he resigned from his position at Digital 8 on January 17, 2025, to focus on other business ventures and his current role in government.
When asked about Digital 8’s ownership, Ruiz declined to name the actual owners. He also asked reporters to verify the information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
“For the record, it’s owned by—well, I don’t know if they want to be dragged into this issue, but you can check with the SEC who owns Digital 8,” he said.
According to the notice of award from the PCSO to Digital 8 dated December 20, 2024, the company’s president is former police colonel Rommel Miranda.
Miranda has been implicated in a case involving the kidnapping and murder of a Chinese-Filipino businesswoman, whose body was discovered in a septic tank.
Ruiz added that “he did not need to divest anything” from Digital 8.
“Hindi naman ako may-ari,” he said.
When questioned about the possible motive behind the alleged efforts to damage his reputation, Ruiz suggested that one reason could be the directive requiring all presidential appointees in the PCO, its attached agencies, and state-run companies under the office to submit courtesy resignations.
In the same briefing, Ruiz expressed disappointment that the responsible for the reports – failed to seek his side of the story before publishing.
However, Ruiz said he would not file a legal action against them.
The City Post has contacted Ruiz for his comments, but he has not responded yet.(TCSP)
