Plunder cases filed vs Janet, 3 senators
AUTOMATIC SUSPENSION FOR JPE, JINGGOY, BONG PUSHED
MANILA — The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) yesterday filed before the Office of the Ombudsman charges of plunder and malversation of public funds against businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles as well as senators Ramon Revilla Jr., Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada and five former representatives. The NBI and Justice Secretary Leila de Lima filed the plunder and malversation charges at around 3:45 p.m. Senator Miriam Defensor-santiago said that senators charged with plunder over the P10-billion pork barrel scam should be automatically suspended. Santiago, a constitutional law expert, said that under the 1991 Anti- Plunder Act, the accused shall be automatically suspended from office when the Ombudsman files plunder charges in court. “This means that the senators and representatives implicated as persons of interest shall be suspended from Congress while trial is pending,” Santiago said in a news release. De Lima said that the complaints were based on “truckload” of evidence on the pork barrel scam gathered by the bureau from 16 whistleblowers and concerned agencies. De Lima said plunder charges were filed against the three senators and former Masbate representative Rizalina Seachon-lanete and former APEC party-list representative Edgar Valdez Based on the executive summary of the complaints, the three senators and two former representatives’ accumulated amount of plunder were: • Juan Ponce Enrile - P172,834,500 • Ramon Revilla Jr. - P224,512,500 • Jinggoy Estrada - P183,793,750 • Rizalina Seachon-lanete - P108,405,000 • Edgar Valdez - P56,087,500
“The amount of plunder accumulated by each lawmaker representing the kickbacks received from Napoles, so itong limang pong ito puro more than P50 million,” De Lima said at a press conference following the filing of the complaints.
Charges of malversation of public funds, direct bribery and other violations of the Graft and Corrupt Practices Act were filed against former representatives Rodolfo Plaza (Agusan del Sur Rep), Samuel Dangwa (Benguet) and Constantino Jaraula (Cagayan de Oro City).
De Lima said that the three former lawmakers’ accumulated amount of plunder were below the P50 million threshold for the filing of plunder.
Rodolfo Plaza - P42,137,800
Samuel Dangwa - P26,770,472
Constantino Jaraula - P20,843,750
“Since yung amount of commission, kickbacks and rebates (from Napoles) are less than P50 million for these three lawmakers, hindi namin mailagay as plunder,” De Lima explained.
Napoles, meanwhile, was named in the complaint as among the co-conspirators in the plunder and malversation charges against the three senators and the five former representatives. She was listed as thr 38th respondent.
De Lima said that a total of 38 people, including Napoles and the lawmakers, were named as respondents in the plunder and malversation charges.
The three senators’ and five former representatives’ chiefs of staff and their representatives were also charged with plunder, direct bribery and malversation charges. These include Enrile’s former chief of staff Jessica “Gigi” Reyes, who fled the country for Macau last week.
Five former executives of government-owned corporations similarly face charges, namely Alan Javellana of National Agribusiness Corporation ( NABCOR); Gondalina Amata of the National Livelihood Development Corporation (NLDC); Antonio Ortiz and Dennis Cunanan of Technology Resource Center (TRC); and Salvador Salacop of Zamboanga del Norte Rubber Estate Corporation.
Five NABCOR employees, three NLDC staff members and two TRC officials are also named as co-conspirators.
The voluminous evidentiary documents were delivered by two closed vans escorted by the PNP Highway Patrol Group to the Ombudsman’s office in Quezon City.
De Lima led the team of investigators and lawyers in filing the complaint. The 10 whistle-blowers in the scam including Benhur Luy also filed their sworn affidavits.
“This is only the first batch of respondents,” De Lima explained in a press conference, adding that other people involved in the scam will also be charged next week.
Private complainant Levito Baligod, counsel for the whistle- blowers, said that the 38 names arose from testimonies of whistleblowers as well as other evidence gathered over the past months.
“Ang ginagawa lang ng NBI ay Napoles-related NGOs,” De Lima said, explaining why other questionable NGOs do not fig-
ure in the complaints.
SANTIAGO WANTS SUSPENSION
Santiago cited Section 5 of the Anti-Plunder Act, which states that “Any public officer against whom any criminal prosecution under a valid information under this Act in whatever stage of execution and mode of participation, is pending in court, shall be suspended from office.”
Santiago added that there is no constitutional provision that senators can be suspended only by the upper chamber.
“That provision is not found in the Constitution, but only in the Senate Rules. While under the Anti-Plunder Act, suspension is mandatory as indicated by the word ‘shall’ in the Senate Rules suspension is merely permissive, as indicated by the use of the word ‘may,’” Santiago said.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said the senators charged with plunder before the Office of the Ombudsman won’t be suspended from office just yet.
In an interview on ANC Headstart, Drilon said the senators tagged in the pork barrel scam who are now facing plunder charges will not be automatically suspended since the Ombudsman will have to evaluate the evidence gathered by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
Drilon said if the Ombudsman finds the evidence of the NBI sufficient, the charged senators will be required to file their counteraffidavit.
“This is the process dahil the Ombudsman is like a fiscal wherein anyone who is charged will be given the opportunity to respond. Usually, under the rules, they are given 10 days,” Drilon said in the ANC interview, a transcript of which was uploaded to the Senate website.
But if the NBI evidence is found insufficient, the Ombudsman will order a further investigation or factfinding.
Drilon said a legislator will be suspended after the Sandiganbayan issues an arrest warrant against the lawmaker charged with plunder, a non-bailable offense.
“In effect there is suspension because if it’s a non- bailable offense, the lawmaker is automatically prevented from reporting for work,” said Drilon.
ENRILE HOSPITALIZED
Enrile was hospitalized ahead of the filing of plunder charges against him.
In a televised press briefing, Senator Jinggoy Estrada said a stone in Enrile’s gallbladder prompted his blood pressure to rise.
“I think he was rushed to the hospital a few days ago,” said Estrada.
A radio report said that according to Senator Vicente Sotto III, Enrile was hospitalized last Saturday and that the veteran senator remains confined.
Estrada said he was able to talk to the former Senate president, who he claimed was in “high spirits.”
“He just informed me that he will fight this case in the courts,” said Estrada.
For his part, Estrada said he is “very, very confident” that he will be acquitted.
“Kaya kong depensahan ang sarili ko dito,” he said. “I am not leaving the country. Haharapin ko lahat ito.”