Imelda decries harassment as Sandigan orders her arrest

The Sandiganbayan ordered yesterday the arrest of former First Lady Imelda Romualdez-Marcos on graft charges, but the flamboyant widow of dictator Ferdinand Marcos immediately posted bail of P120,000.

Crying "pure and simple harassment," Mrs. Marcos, however, expressed confidence she would be acquitted by the anti-graft court.

Marcos, 72, was accused of setting up bogus foundations when she was minister of human settlements under the 20-year rule of her husband in order to hide ill-gotten wealth in Swiss banks.

Sandiganbayan Justice Narciso Nario said he found "probable cause" to try Mrs. Marcos on graft charges, and ordered the court sheriff to arrest her.

Nario added that a marathon hearing will be scheduled.

Marcos voluntarily showed up at the office of Nario to post bail in connection with the four graft cases lodged against her

The former first lady and congresswoman was accused of "participating in the management and administration" of several fictitious foundations she and her husband allegedly used as a conduit in funneling or transferring ill-gotten wealth.

Marcos was president of the Philippines from 1966 to 1986, when he was toppled by a military-backed popular uprising that also sent his family on exile to Hawaii.

The former dictator died in Hawaii in 1989 while his widow and their three children were allowed to return to the Philippines where two of them regained political power in their native Ilocos Norte.

The government has accused the Marcoses of plunder during their 20-year reign, saying they have amassed some $10 billion which was stashed in secret bank accounts in Switzerland.

But no member of the Marcos family or their alleged cronies who were also charged with raiding the national treasury has been imprisoned.

The government has so far recovered only $540 million from the Swiss accounts.

After her return in 1992, Imelda ran for president but lost, only to win later a congressional seat for her home province of Leyte.

Her son Ferdinand Jr. was also re-elected governor of Ilocos Norte while daughter Imee is a congresswoman.

Youngest daughter Irene who married into the wealthy Araneta clan was also swept into the eye of a controversy when she allegedly tried to transfer an erstwhile undiscovered Swiss bank account to Germany.

Meanwhile, the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), created to specifically recover the Marcos hidden wealth, expressed elation over the arrest order against Mrs. Marcos.

PCGG chairman Ruben Carranza Jr. said the order set the stage for Mrs. Marcos’ prosecution.

"We are confident of the evidence we have. Our main goal was to make sure not only civil cases move, but also the corresponding criminal cases," Carranza said.

He stressed that while a victory in the court trials would not necessarily mean recovery of the stolen assets, Mrs. Marcos would be sent to prison. — With Sheila Crisostomo