FORMER Bureau of Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon will not testify in his defense about his pending graft cases before the Sandiganbayan and will instead send his former chief of staff to the witness stand.
The Sandiganbayan allowed the substitution in a resolution issued on April 10 over objections from government prosecutors.
Fifth Division Associate Justice Maryann E. Corpus-Mañalac penned the six-page ruling that granted the defendant’s request. Associate Justices Zaldy V. Trespeses and Arthur O. Malabaguio concurred.
Faeldon was charged with two counts of violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) in connection with the alleged smuggling of Vietnamese rice worth P34 million through the Port of Cagayan de Oro in 2017.
The cases stemmed from a complaint that former Sen. Panfilo Lacson filed with the Office of the Ombudsman.
Also charged were Customs district collector Tomas Alcid and officials of grains import firm Cebu Lite Trading Inc. (CLTI) corporate officers and board directors Lucio Roger Lim Jr., Ambrosio Ursal and Rowena Lim.
Lacson said Faeldon illegally approved the release of the first shipment of 21,800 bags of rice valued at P18.5 million and the second one with 18,200 bags worth P15.5 million, even if they were already seized by customs officers due to the absence of valid import permits and non-payment of customs duties and taxes.
The former BOC chief had earlier tried to seek outright dismissal of the cases based on insufficiency of evidence, but the court turned this down, declaring that the evidence adequately supported the key allegations against him and his co-accused.
It added that permitting him would only result in delaying the proceedings.
Faeldon admitted that his chief of staff was not among the persons he identified whose testimonies he would be presenting in his defense, but asked the court to relax the rules since he cannot personally appear to give his testimony.
He said he is “not in the proper emotional and mental state to make the necessary preparations …to take the witness stand and testify,” citing the recent death of a close friend whose identity he did not disclose.
Faeldon said his former chief of staff will primarily testify “on the processes, procedures, and administrative matters” in the BOC.
Faeldon did not ask for additional hearing days, saying his stand-in or substitute witness would only need the same period he would have required if he were to appear in court.
Prosecutors tried to block the defendant’s proxy, noting that the said person was not included in the list of witnesses for the defense during the pre-trial conference and was not a signatory to any documents in relation to the transactions involved in the case.
The court, however, said it is satisfied that Faeldon’s explanations satisfied the requirement of “good cause” for the presentation of an additional witness.
While noting that Faeldon’s claim of being “not in the proper mental and emotional state” was both vague and unsubstantiated, the court said it will allow the stand-in witness as it will serve “the greater interest of justice.”
“In this Court’s view, allowing Faeldon to present his intended substitute witness will serve the ends of justice. In this way, Faeldon will be able to present what he claims as “critical evidence” to his defense without causing a delay in the proceedings or prejudice to the prosecution,” the Sandiganbayan added.
Faeldon was reminded to furnish the prosecution with his witness’ judicial affidavit and that the prosecution is allowed to raise objections to the testimony when it is offered by the defense.
