Tingting asks SC to act on impeach raps vs PNoy

The Supreme Court (SC) was asked yesterday to compel Ombudsman Conchita Carprio Morales to investigate and file an impeachment complaint against President Aquino in connection with the outlawed Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).

Petitioners led by Margarita “Tingting” Cojuangco, the President’s aunt; and Greco Belgica also asked the SC to order Ombudsman Morales and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to prosecute the authors, proponents, and implementors of DAP and those who misused their PDAF allocations.

“Considering that time is of the essence and there is great danger or risk that those involved would try to obstruct their investigation or prosecution, being in power, not to mention the need to put a stop to the interminable dilly-dallying and unwarranted excuses or dereliction of functions and duties of the concerned prosecutorial organs of the government, there is an imperious need for the Honorable Court to issue a writ of preliminary mandatory injunction directing them to act accordingly,” petitioners said.

They pointed out that on top of the Ombudsman’s snail-paced investigation of the irregularities, the action of the Department of Justice on DAP and PDAF cases “is sub-par” due to “selective prosecution.”

With the conduct of slow investigation on cases, vital pieces of evidence needed for successful prosecution of those responsible could be destroyed, they said.

“Justice demands swift and just actions on the part of the public respondents concerned. Any more delay would further injure the national interest and lead the people to more frustration, not to mention the probability that vital pieces of evidence would be destroyed and the culprits would remain scot-free,” they added.

In 2013, the SC voided the pork barrel system of Congress as it declared the PDAF and all its previous forms unconstitutional.

In its decision on PDAF, the SC directed prosecutorial agencies like the DOJ and Office of the Ombudsman to “investigate and prosecute all government officials and/or private individuals for possible criminal offenses related to the irregular, improper and/ or unlawful disbursement of all funds under the pork barrel system.”

In July last year, the SC declared unconstitutional several portions of DAP, particularly the withdrawal of unobligated allotments from the implementing agencies, and the declaration of the withdrawn unobligated allotments and unreleased appropriations as savings prior to the end of the fiscal year and without complying with the statutory definition of savings contained in the General Appropriations Act; cross-border transfers of the savings of the Executive to augment the appropriations of other offices outside the Executive; and use of unprogrammed funds despite the absence of a certification by the National Treasurer that the revenue collections exceeded the revenue targets for non-compliance with the conditions provided in the relevant GAA.

It affirmed with finality its DAP ruling last February, but it clarified that the voided acts did not include the funding of projects and programs not covered by the General Appropriations Act.