Memorandum of Disapproval of Bill for the Relief of Bonifacio Santos.

I AM WITHHOLDING my approval from H. R. 6773, "For the relief of Bonifacio Santos."

This bill would authorize the payment of $ 1,500 in reimbursement for a contribution made by Mr. Santos in 1944 to the Philippine guerrilla forces fighting the Japanese.

The beneficiary states that in 1944 he made a contribution of 3,000 Japanese Occupation Pesos to the Philippine guerrilla forces. He supports his claim with an affidavit from an American officer who recalls receiving the money, and also a receipt for the money, dated in 1944 and signed by the same officer.

After the war, a general program was established in the Philippine Islands for the payment of such claims based upon aid or services furnished the guerrillas in their fight against the Japanese. Despite the widespread publicity attendant upon this program, as evidenced by the hundreds of thousands of claims submitted, no administrative claim was ever filed by the beneficiary. He states he was unaware of his right to do so.

Awards under the general claims program were uniformly paid according to the so-called Ballantyne scale for currency conversion. Under that scale, the present case would have resulted in an award to the beneficiary of $16.67. This bill, in contrast, proposes an award of $1,500.

Approval of H. R. 6773 would be both discriminatory and inequitable. The record on this bill furnishes no valid basis for distinguishing the beneficiary from thousands of others whose claims were rejected because they were not filed until after the termination of the general program. furthermore, it would be entirely without justification to pay to this beneficiary a sum of 90 times larger than he could have received had he been paid under the general claims program.

For the foregoing reasons, I have considered it necessary to withhold my approval from H. R. 6773.

DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER