Cebu town treasurer regains freedom
BY PETER TABINGO
THE Sandiganbayan has granted the application for probation and release on recognizance of a former municipal treasurer of Compostela, Cebu, which effectively allowed him to be released from the Asturias Municipal Police Station jail and admission to probation to serve out what is left of his reduced sentence.
Dominador Maravillas was sentenced to reclusion perpetua on October 8, 2001 by the Sandiganbayan for malversation of public funds, which meant he was facing a maximum of 40 years imprisonment.
Records showed Maravillas and late Compostela municipal mayor Gilbert Wagas were found guilty of siphoning off P376,618.65 public funds and sentenced to reclusion perpetua with fines equivalent to the amount misappropriated and additional penalty of perpetual disqualification from government employment.
Wagas challenged the conviction through appeals but was arrested and committed to the New Bilibid Prison in 2009. A newspaper reported that he passed away while serving his sentence on December 20, 2017.
On the other hand, Maravillas was only arrested on February 18, 2021 on a bench warrant issued by the Sandiganbayan dated December 16, 2020.
Six months into his sentence, the accused file a petition with the Cebu Regional Trial Court (RTC) to modify his sentence based on RA No. 10951 which adjusted penalties for various offenses.
On October 12, 2023, the Cebu RTC Branch 29 ruled in favor of Maravillas’ motion, reducing his sentence from reclusion perpetua to just two years to four years imprisonment with preventive imprisonment to be credited.
In a separate petition before the Sandiganbayan, the defendant invoked the Probation Law arguing that he is now qualified for probation since the penalty in his case has been reduced below the six years threshold.
He likewise asked to be released on recognizance under the authority of a barangay councilor who has accepted custody over him and guaranteed that he will be produced in court when required.
“Upon examination of the records, the Court gives due course to the application for probation. There is no showing that accused falls under any of the…. disqualifications,” the Sandiganbayan said in its April 7, 2024 resolution.
In granting his request to be released on recognizance, the court also pointed out that Maravillas is no longer considered a flight risk.
“The Court further notes that accused’s advanced age minimized the probability of flight if released on recognizance. As such, the Court hereby allows the release on recognizance of accused Maravillas to the custody of Josias Aguanta Peñalosa who shall guarantee the appearance of the accused whenever required by the Court,” the court ruled.
Fire hits 1st Ilagan diocese seat
By Gerard Naval
A MASSIVE fire ravaged the St. Ferdinand Parish Church, the original seat of the Diocese of Ilagan in Isabela, yesterday, causing a huge setback in its ongoing renovation.
In a report by CBCP News, St. Ferdinand Parish priest Ric-Zeus Angobang disclosed the effects of the fire that hit the 17th-century church.
“The fire ravaged everything,” Angobang told the official news agency of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
He said the blaze happened amid the ongoing renovation of the church.
Citing initial reports, he said the fire started at about 11:40 a.m. while workers were installing steel trusses on the church’s ceiling.
“This happened while there’s an ongoing reinforcement of the ceiling of the parish church,” Angobang related.
He said the fire was extinguished by firefighters after about an hour.
Despite this, the priest rallied the faithful to pray for the success of the project.
“Nobody wants this to happen. But we can surrender to God’s mercy and rise from these ashes, and work together to rebuild it,” Angobang said.
The St. Ferdinand Parish Church was the first cathedral when Ilagan was established as a Diocese in 1970.
The Cathedral of Saint Michael the Archangel in Gamu, Isabela, subsequently became the seat of the Diocese of Ilagan in 2003.
P3M spent by Clark airport execs on foreign trips
‘irregular and unnecessary’, says COA
BY Peter Tabingo
GOVERNMENT auditors have tagged P3.1 million travel expenses incurred last year by top officials of the Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) in three trips abroad as “irregular and unnecessary disbursement of public funds.”
The 2023 audit report on the CIAC released last April 16 revealed that the airport officials who joined the foreign travels failed to secure the required prior approval from the Office of the President or the Secretary of the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
The audit team said the trips were all investment missions yet even CIAC officials whose names were not in the invitation tagged along and spent hundreds of thousands.
Likewise questioned was the claim of expenses for excess baggage without complete documentation.
The CIAC management defended the expenditure as “essential” travel to promote the Clark Airport as a global premier logistics hub.
It added that several officials contributed to the effort to tap “various foreign platforms” where CIAC can showcase potential business opportunities and establish future collaborations.
Since the investment missions are marketing venues, the CIAC delegation brought with them marketing brochures, kits, and corporate giveaways which would account for the cost of excess baggage.
According to the travel records obtained by auditors, three CIAC officials attended the Investment Mission in Australia on June 24 to July 1, 2023 including a member of the Board of Directors who spent P339,834.40; the manager for Strategy and Corporate Management Department (P337,462.94), and the manager of Marketing Department (P270,742.94.)
For the Investment Mission in Japan on September 4 to 8, 2023, those who went were the Vice president for Administration and Finance Group (P134,076.93), a legal officer from the assistant VP for Legal Services (P134,076.93), and the manager of Marketing Department (P134,356.93).
In the Investment and Benchmarking Mission held in Canada from November 6 to 17, 2023, six airport officials went with the CIAC president and chief executive officer, including the VP for Administration and Finance, the managers for the Engineering Department and for Strategy and Corporate Management, a member of the Board of Directors, and the senior executive assistant of the CIA president and CEO.
They each spent between P291,435 to P294,435.
“The attendance of certain individuals can be considered unnecessary, as demonstrated by the absence of a letter of invitation extended to each participant. Moreover, scrutiny of the disbursements’ supporting documents showed that travel orders… lacked approval from the appropriate authority,” the Commission on Audit pointed out.
Under Executive Order No. 77, it is mandatory for the head and members of the governing boards of government-owned or controlled corporations like the CIAC to secure the prior approval of the Office of the President or the Department Secretary, in this case, the DOTr.
For department heads and other personnel of the GOCC, the authority travel was supposed to come from the Department Secretary.
“Due to lack of approval of the travel orders… expenses for the foreign travels were deemed irregular. Such travels, due to their distance and nature, only result in significant costs for the government and contradict the principles of economic measures,” the COA added.
Exactly what the additional officials did during the trip was not known as the audit team noted that the documents submitted did not provide the said information.
“Moreover, the purpose of travel for all participants, as indicated in the request for travel authority, was to accomplish a similar objective — without specifying the distinctive and significant contributions of each individual participant,” auditors noted.
Officers group censures Alvarez
BY VICTOR REYES
THE Association of Generals and Flag Officers (AGFO) yesterday censured Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez, a colonel in the Philippine Marines reserve force, for calling on the military to withdraw support from President Marcos Jr.
The statement of AGFO, an organization of active and retired generals and flag officers in the Armed Forces and the PNP, came over a week after the former House speaker issued the call during a rally in Tagum City, amid rising tension between the Philippines and China in connection with the territorial dispute in the West Philippine Sea. Alvarez said the Marcos administration is dragging the country into a war with China. If the military withdraws support, Marcos will be forced to step down as president, he said. Alvarez apologized two days later, saying he was carried away by his emotions. Alvarez is allied with the pro-China former President Duterte who has been criticizing Marcos over several issues.
“Rep. Alvarez’ call for military and police withdrawal of support to the President is a glaring attempt, in pursuit of a purely political end, to test the organizational ethos of the country’s armed forces,” said retired Vice Adm. Emilio Marayag, AGFO president and board chairman.
“As a reservist officer, he must have exercised prudence and restraint in expressing his position that deviates from the norms of conduct of an officer and a gentleman and violates certain laws of the land,” he added.
Marayag said AGFO “fully supports” the investigation being conducted by the AFP and other agencies to investigate Alvarez “for his seditious statements.”
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro has said the call of Alvarez for the AFP to withdraw support from its commander-in-chief “will not amount to anything but to a possible criminal investigation.”
National Security Adviser Eduardo Año said such call “is not only irresponsible but also illegal and unconstitutional,” adding such utterances and actions “can be construed as seditious or rebellious and they have no place in our society.”
Armed Forces chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr has already rejected Alvarez’ call. Brawner said the military will continue to protect the Constitution and follow the chain of command.
The Philippine Navy said it has directed the Philippine Marines to investigate the matter and ask Alvarez to explain his statement.
DOJ okays filing of raps vs consignee of
P218M shabu seized at NAIA
BY Ashzel Hachero
THE Department of Justice yesterday approved the filing of a criminal case against the consignee of the P218 million worth of shabu seized by authorities at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport last week.
“The DOJ, after conducting inquest proceedings, found probable cause to charge the consignee of the over 31 kilograms of shabu worth P218,484,000 seized by members of the NAIA Inter-Agency Drug Interdiction Task Group,” the DOJ said in a statement.
An inquest is done to determine whether an individual arrested would be released on account of dismissal of the charges, released for further preliminary investigation proceedings, or charged in court.
The consignee, Christine Tigranes, now faces a case for violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, specifically the provision against the importation of illegal drugs.
Tigranes will also face a case for violation of Republic Act 10863, or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.
However, the DOJ did not provide details on the findings of probable cause and where or when the case would be lodged against Tigranes.
She was arrested by authorities after she claimed the shipment from a certain Isaac Chikore of Zimbabwe last April 13.
The shipment, declared as machinery mufflers, was placed inside four parcels and arrived at the Paircargo warehouse facility in the NAIA complex.
The parcels passed through an X-ray examination where authorities noticed something suspicious, leading them to conduct a physical inspection which led to the discovery and seizure of the illegal drugs.
Comelec erred in junking DQ case vs Cagayan gov – SC
BY ASHZEL HACHERO
THE Supreme Court (SC) has reversed the ruling of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) which junked the disqualification case filed against then gubernatorial candidate and now Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba.
In an en banc decision dated April 16, the magistrates granted the petition for certiorari filed by Ma. Rose Zarah De Guzman-Lara and ruled that the poll body abused its discretion when it rejected Lara’s plea to disqualify Mamba in the 2022 elections.
The Court en banc remanded Lara’s case to the Comelec en banc for “proper disposition.”
Lara ran ran but lost in the gubernatorial race in Cagayan during the 2022 elections. Mamba won the race with a 52 percent share of the votes, compared to Lara’s 47 percent.
A day after the May 9 elections, or on May 10, 2022, Lara asked the poll body through a petition filed via electronic mail to disqualify Mamba, citing his alleged massive vote buying and unlawful disbursement of public funds activities.
On May 11, the Comelec proclaimed Mamba as the winning governor of Cagayan province.
On December 14, 2022, the poll body’s Second Division disqualified Mamba after “finding substantial evidence” that he violated a provision in the Omnibus Election Code which prohibits the unauthorized release, disbursement or expenditure of public funds during the campaign period in connection with the release of P550 million in public funds under the “No Barangay Left Behind, No Town Left Behind” and “Oplan Tulong sa Barangay” programs.
The Comelec en banc overturned the Second Division’s ruling on May 7, 2023.
It said that under its rules on the filing of electronic petitions, Lara’s petition, which was emailed at 6:21 p.m. of May 10, 2022, was considered to have been filed the next working day or on May 11 at 8 a.m.
Since the petition was filed after Mamba’s proclamation, the Comelec en banc held that it has no more authority to hear and decide the disqualification case.
This prompted Lara to elevate the case to the Supreme Court, which ruled on her favor.
The SC said Article 13 of the Civil Code held that a “day” should be understood to mean 24 hours.
“As rules of procedure cannot take precedence over substantive law, the Comelec Rules of Procedures should yield to the interpretation directed by the Civil Code. Hence, the date or day of proclamation should be understood to mean the full 24 hours of the day on when such proclamation takes place,” the ruling penned by Associate Jhosep Lopez said.
It added that since Mamba was proclaimed on May 11 at 1:39 a.m. petitions for disqualification against him could still be filed “anytime of the day.”
Further, the High Court held that the Comelec rules on electronic filing should have taken stock of particular circumstances surrounding petition for disqualifications given that the proclamation of candidates can happen any time, whether day or night.
“Actual receipt of pleadings by email is not limited to physical structures of an agency, which remains open during certain hours of the day,” the SC added.
A full copy of the decision has yet to be released by the en banc.
Overstaying Indian nabbed before he could leave PH
BY Ashzel Hachero
AN overstaying Indian citizen was apprehended by immigration officers at the Clark International Airport in Pampanga before he could board his flight out of the country, the Bureau of Immigration said yesterday.
BI Border Control and Intelligence Unit chief Vicent Bryan Allas said Jasbir Singh, 40, was intercepted at the boarding gate last April 17 minutes before he could board his flight to Singapore.
Allas said Singh presented his boarding pass with an immigration departure stamp and emergency travel document without a BI stamp to immigration officers.
“It was obvious that the passenger wanted to leave without paying the immigration fees and fines that overstaying alien tourists are assessed and required to pay before they could be cleared to leave the country,” Allas said in a report to Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco.
BI records showed Singh arrived last December 9, 2023 and was admitted as a tourist for 21 days.
Tansingco has ordered the relief of the immigration officer who allowed Singh to proceed to the gates without proper immigration clearance.
“He will be facing an investigation for possible cases of grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service,” Tansingco said.
He declined to identify the immigration officer pending the investigation of the incident.
Singh is detained at the BI detention facility in Bicutan, Taguig City where he will remain while undergoing deportation proceedings.
BuCor: Nearly 4K metro inmates transferred to provincial jails
BY ASHZEL HACHERO
CORRECTIONS Director Genera Gregorio Catapang Jr. Yesterday said 3,993 inmates from the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City and the Correctional Institute for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City have been transferred since January this year to provincial prison and penal farms run by the Bureau of Corrections .
Catapang has said that the transfer of Bilibid inmates is a “stop-gap” measure to address overcrowding in the national penitentiary while the BuCor is waiting for funding for the construction of regional correctional facilities as part of its medium and long-term development and modernization plan.
The transfer is also part of the agency’s efforts to decongest the NBP prior to its planned closure in 2028.
Yesterday, Catapang said another batch of 500 Bilibid inmates were moved to the San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm in Zamboanga City.
Of the 3,993 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) who have been transferred, 999 were moved to the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Palawan; 1,000 to the Davao Prison and Penal Farm; 1,000 to the San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm, 546 to the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro; and 448 to the Leyte Regional Prison in Abuyog, Leyte.
“Continuous ang ating pag-transfer ng mga persons deprived of liberty (The transfer of our persons deprived of liberty is continuous), first as part of our decongestion, second to augment the workforce needs of penal farms in agricultural projects and third as part of our preparation for the closure of the NBP by 2028,” Catapang said.
The government is planning to turn the 350-hectare NBP complex into a government center, open park and mixed-use land.
Last April 14, Catapang said 500 Bilibid inmates were also transferred to Iwahig.
The NBP and BuCor’s six other operating prison and penal farms hold over 50,000 inmates, although their total capacity is only around 12,000, or an average congestion rate of 310 percent.
The national penitentiary alone currently holds 25,886 inmates, though originally it only had a 6,000 capacity when it was built.
