Manila envoy gets 27 years jail for graft

MANILA: A special court called the Sandiganbayan convicted a retired senior diplomat for graft and sentenced him to 27 years in jail for pocketing $17,524 in insurance payments for a damaged governmentowned townhouse in New York City in 2006.

Aside from inding Lauro Baja, the former Philippine ambassador to the UN, guilty of graft and falsiication of public documents, the Sandiganbayan also ordered his perpetual disqualiication from holding another public ofice.

The case arose from Baja’s failure to remit to the government the $17,524 insurance payments for the repair of a townhouse in New York City, which he used as his oficial residence while serving as the permanent representative of the Philippine Mission to the UN in 2006.

Court records showed that instead of remitting the payments to the government upon advice of the mission’s inance oficer, Baja opened a separate account with the Philippine National Bank (PNB) branch in New York City.

The court also rejected Baja’s defense that the insurance proceeds were used to pay the repair of the townhouse damaged by the looding caused when heated pipes burst at the unit’s second loor.

“Accused Baja disregarded protocal and insisted on opening a separate PNB account ... consequently, the DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs) had no information about the insurance proceeds because the funds were purposely isolated and separated from the (mission’s) official bank accounts,” the court ruled.

It also noted that Baja also kept silent about the withdrawal of the insurance proceeds as well as the subsequent closure of the (separate) PNP account.

The court pointed out: “Under the circumstances, the court is convinced that the feigned transparency of accused Baja betrays his active concealment of the use and disposal of the insurance proceeds he received on behalf of the mission.”

In particular, the court said that Baja failed to prove his claim that he used the payments to repair the damage by not presenting original documents from the construction company that repaired the damage.

Baja said he would ask the court to reconsider its decision inding him guilty of graft and falsiication of public documents.