FORMER Postmaster General Maria Josefina dela Cruz has been acquitted by the Sandiganbayan on charges of violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and Unlawful Appointment punishable under Article 244 of the Revised Penal Code.
In a 38-page decision issued last October 10, the anti-graft court’s Fifth Division held that the evidence presented by government prosecutors fell short of proving beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant acted with evident bad faith or any ulterior motive.
Associate Justice Rafael R. Lagos penned the ruling, with Associate Justices Maria Theresa V. Mendoza-Arcega and Maryann E. Corpus-Mañalac concurring.
Dela Cruz, who also previously served as governor of Bulacan from 1998 to 2007, was accused of giving unwarranted benefit, advantage, or preference to Esther Cabigao whom she appointed on September 1, 2011 to the position of Department Director despite the latter not having the proper qualifications required by the Civil Service Commission for the post.
In the separate charge of unlawful appointment, prosecutors noted that Cabigao landed the job even if she did not have a Master’s Degree, 120 hours of managerial training, and a five-year supervisory experience.
Originally, there were two counts of graft and two counts of unlawful appointment filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against Dela Cruz but one count of each criminal offense was dismissed by the Sandiganbayan due to insufficiency of evidence through the grant of demurrer to evidence.
In acquitting the Postmaster General, the court pointed out that the prosecution did not offer any proof to back the allegation that Cabigao was appointed “instead of a qualified applicant” as witnesses during the trial testified that Cabigao was the only applicant.
The court noted that Cabigao was appointed when the Philpost was undergoing a rationalization plan, which made filling the positions of Human Resource Management Department (HRD) manager III a necessity as a vacancy would have stalled the rationalization.
“The appointment was a critical action on the part of the accused, justified by the exigency of the service. Work at HRMD needed a responsible official to do the manager’s job. Otherwise, work would have been in limbo or worse, ground to a halt,” the Sandiganbayan said.
At most, Cabigao’s appointment despite deficient qualification only amounted to a violation of the Civil Service rules, which is an administrative liability and not a criminal offense for violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
At the same time, there was no question that Cabigao rendered service and did the job so that the propriety of her compensation was not even challenged.
Dela Cruz, testifying in her defense, said she relied on the certification of the Personnel Selection Board that Cabigao “had been screened and found qualified.”
“The accused cannot be faulted if she relied on the above-given certification. She cannot be deemed to have violated the law in making such an alleged unlawful appointment. Her good faith reliance negates any criminal intent on her part,” the court added.
