Sandigan orders Floirendo's arrest

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan has ordered the arrest of Davao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Antonio Floirendo Jr. for a graft case in connection with his alleged unlawful business interests in a firm doing business with the government.

“You are hereby commanded to arrest Antonio Del Rosario Floirendo Jr...and to bring him before us as possible to be dealt with as the law and the Rules of Court direct,” the arrest warrant issued by anti-graft court's Sixth Division read.

The arrest warrant was dated February 19 and was signed by Sixth Division chairman Associate Justice Sarah Jane Hernandez.

The arrest warrant was addressed to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), Quezon City Police District, (QCPD), the Davao Del Norte Provincial Police Office and the Panabo, Davao Del Norte Police Station.

The Sandiganbayan Security and Sheriff Services office confirmed to reporters Wednesday that copies of the arrest warrant were already served to law enforcement authorities for proper implementation.

The Sixth Division set Floirendo's bail bond at P30,000. Court records, however, show that he has yet to post his bail as of Wednesday.

Furthermore, the Sixth Division, in a hold departure order also dated February 19, directed the Bureau of Immigration to bar Floirendo from leaving the country “except upon prior approval from this Court.”

The arrest order and the HDO came, after the court, issued a resolution finding probable cause to put him on trial for a case of violation of Section 3 (h) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

“After perusing the [case] Information and evaluating the resolution of the prosecutor, the evidence in support thereof, and the records of the preliminary investigation attached thereto, the Court finds that sufficient grounds exist for the finding of probable cause for the purpose of issuing warrant of arrest against the accused charged in the instant case,” the Sixth Division said in its resolution dated February 19.

Section 3(h) of RA 3019 prohibits government officials from “directly or indirectly having financial or pecuniary interest in any business, contract or transaction... in which he is prohibited by the Constitution or by any law from having any interest.”

The case, filed by the Office of the Ombudsman on February 9, stemmed from a complaint of House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.

It can be remembered that in its September 4 resolution, the ombudsman found merit on Alvarez' allegation that Floirendo, the biggest financier of President Rodrigo Duterte’s presidential bid, continues to become a board member of Tagum Agricultural Development Co. Inc. (Tadeco), despite his election as congressman.

Tadeco entered into a joint venture agreement (JVA) with the Bureau of Corrections in 1969 which allowed the firm to lease 3,000 hectares of land in the Davao Penal Colony for a banana plantation.

Tadeco is the world’s largest contiguous banana plantation, engaged in the production and export of Cavendish bananas to Japan, Hong Kong, China, Korea, Middle East, Russia, Malaysia and Singapore under the Del Monte and Dole brands.

In its September ruling, the ombudsman said its investigation showed that when the JVA was renewed in 2003, Floirendo was already elected as lawmaker and even though he ceased being a board member, he allegedly still owned 75,000 shares of stock of the company and even became its vice chairman in 2008.

The ombudsman affirmed its ruling on January 15, maintaining that Floirendo's failure to divest all his interests in Tadeco, no matter how small their value are, was in violation of Article VI, Section 14 of the 1987 Constitution, which prohibits members of the Senate and the House of Representatives form having a direct or indirect financial interest in any contract with the government.