Rep. Catamco, co-accused post bail in ‘fertilizer scam’ case
KIDAPAWAN CITY – North Cotabato 2nd District Representative Nancy Catamco and her co-accused ex-husband Pompey Perez and former Mayor Edgar Rama of Poro, Cebu, have posted bail before the Sandiganbayan in connection with their alleged involvement in a “fertilizer scam” case.
Dragged on for over 10 years under three administrations, the case of alleged conspiracy between and among the three accused of defrauding the municipal government of Poro of R5 million was filed by the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) before the anti-graft court last April.
In a single-page order last May 22, the Sixth Division of the Sandiganbayan approved the cash bail bond of R110,000 sought by Rep. Catamco in the sum of R110,000, together with her ex-husband and ex-mayor Rama in the same amount. Catamco posted the bail last Thursday, the Manila Bulletin learned Saturday.
Sixth Division Associate Justices Sarah Jane Fernandez, Karl B. Miranda, and Kevin Narce Vivero had earlier affirmed probable cause against the three who were indicted in two counts of malversation of public funds and one count of violation of R.A. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Also facing one count of graft are former Poro officials, vice mayor Ronald Carcellar and Councilors Gorgonita Gonzales, Sergio Zurita, Nilo Gorgonio, Gregorio Dorog, and William Surbano, all members of the Sangguniang Bayan.
State prosecutors alleged conspiracy by the defendants to defraud the local government unit (LGU) of Poro in an anomalous procurement of R5 million worth of Vitacrop liquid organic fertilizer back in 2004.
At the time, Catamco was known as Nancy Perez and a private individual representing supplier contractor, Perzebros Company, together with her former spouse.
Graft investigators said the procurement deal pushed through despite lack of public bidding and even if the supplier was barely two months old as shown in the Articles of Incorporation attached to the charge sheet.
The Ombudsman said the fertilizers were paid for at R1,500.00 per bottle but verification showed the actual price per bottle was only R408 or an overprice of R1,092 apiece. The transaction reportedly involved two separate delivery contracts – the first for R3.2 million and the second for R1.675 million.
Prosecutors noted that neither procurement deals had the prior approval of the municipality’s Bids and Awards Committee (BAC). With the posting of bail bonds, the court ordered all the defendants to appear in court on June 22, 2018 at 1:30 p.m. for their arraignment and pre-trial.