Zambo lawmaker cleared of graft

MANILA, Philippines -  The Sandiganbayan has dismissed another case due to the “inordinate delay” of the Office of the Ombudsman in resolving the case.

In an 11-page resolution released yesterday, the first division of the anti-graft court cleared Zamboanga del Sur Second District Rep. Aurora Cerilles of graft over the alleged anomalous procurement of solar-powered street lamps amounting to P14.9 million when she was governor in 2008.

Provincial bids and awards committee members Rino Soria, Mark Anthony Padayhag, Wenefreda Cañada and Evelyn Panuncialman were also cleared of the charges.

The money to purchase the street lamps supposedly came from the Priority Development Assistance Fund or pork barrel of the husband of Cerilles, Antonio, when he was congressman.

The Sandiganbayan said the  ombudsman violated the constitutional right of the respondents to a speedy disposition of cases when it took five years to resolve the complaint and file the case in court.

The complaint was filed against Cerilles and her co-accused on July 7, 2011, but it was only on Jan. 13, 2016 when Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales approved the resolution finding probable cause to file charges. The case was filed before the Sandiganbayan only on July 12, 2016.

“Such delay is inordinate and unreasonable,” the ruling penned by Associate Justice Efren de la Cruz read. “The delay… placed the respondents in a tactical disadvantage.”

The court said some evidence could have been lost or the memory of potential witnesses could be affected with the passing of time.

 ”It is highly probable that the accused suffered anxiety and unrest that came with a prolonged investigation,” it said.

The Sandiganbayan dismissed another graft case filed against Cerilles in 2014 due to the delay in filing the case.

More than a dozen cases have been dismissed by the anti-graft court since late last year over trial delays. Most the cases were in connection with the fertilizer fund scam.

 Last month, the ombudsman urged the Supreme Court to stop the Sandiganbayan from dismissing cases based on the inordinate delay doctrine pending a ruling on its meaning and application.