Palace scraps deal with MJ
December 23, 2002 | 12:00am
The deal is off.
Malacañang dropped yesterday its compromise agreement with Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez, under which the embattled legislator will voluntarily leave by Dec. 26 to face criminal charges in the United States.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye hinted that if Jimenez violates a court order for him to leave after Christmas, the government will pursue the extradition proceedings against Jimenez and forcibly ship him out of the country.
Manila Regional Trial Court Judge Guillermo Purganan has directed Jimenez to "voluntarily depart for the US not later than Dec. 26."
"In the event respondent (Jimenez) fails to do so, the order shall serve as a warrant for his immediate arrest and delivery to the appropriate US authorities," Purganan stated in his one-page order.
Meanwhile, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Reynaldo Wycoco said nothing has changed in their position that they will have to arrest Jimenez by midnight of Dec. 26 if he refuses to leave in accordance with the agreement and as ordered by the court.
Bunye assailed Jimenez for reneging on his promise to depart, which would have made it unnecessary for the government to pursue the extradition process against the congressman.
Bunye was reacting to Jimenez’s statement the other day saying he would rather die than leave the Philippines after he accused President Arroyo of duping him for not sacking Justice Secretary Hernando Perez in violation of their agreement.
For his part, Presidential Spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao said Jimenez would be mocking the law if he refuses to comply with an order of the court "which already demonstrated its humanitarian concern for him by allowing him to spend Christmas here."
Jimenez told reporters the other day that he changed his mind about voluntarily leaving for the US when it became clear to him that Perez, who has gone on a 30-day leave, would return to his post on Dec. 27.
Bunye said Jimenez’s sudden change of heart showed that "he is not a man of his word," adding that everything Jimenez has said and done were meant to stave off his extradition.
"Actually, there’s a deal that he will leave after Christmas, and they themselves talked with the US Embassy, with Speaker (Jose) de Venecia," Bunye said.
"So if he’s not leaving, the deal is off and the normal extradition process will be implemented," Bunye added.
He said Malacañang can now see through Jimenez’s ploys and would take steps to extradite him if he did not leave voluntarily as promised.
Bunye also said Jimenez has obviously become desperate in the face of imminent arrest, extradition and prosecution in the US.
He pointed out that there was no more legal impediment to the extradition process because of a recent Supreme Court order junking his petition for bail.
At the same time, Bunye said Jimenez has no right to demand the removal of Perez because the lawmaker failed to produce concrete evidence to prove his accusations against the justice secretary.
"It is not Perez but the US justice department, which filed the charges against him, that is his adversary here," Tiglao stressed.
He added that Perez has been steadfast in adhering to the country’s extradition treaty with the US.
"If the DOJ (Department of Justice) cannot implement an international treaty, we will be the laughing stock of the world and the community of nations will judge the Philippines as a country where there is no rule of law," Tiglao said.
Bunye said Mrs. Arroyo approved Perez’s request for a 30-day leave to be able to defend himself against verbal attacks by Jimenez and his closest ally in the House of Representatives, Bulacan Rep. Wilfrido Villarama.
"As far as we know, the conditions before he left have remained unchanged. Unless there are other extraordinary circumstances, Secretary Perez will return (to his post)," Bunye said.
A prominent lawyer said yesterday that the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) must arrest Jimenez if he fails to voluntarily leave for the US on Dec. 26 as set by a local trial court.
"Everybody, including Jimenez, should follow the law," lawyer Leonard de Vera of Plunder Watch said.
"He should not toy around with the legal process. The law should not be based on his whims and caprices," De Vera stressed.
De Vera called on Jimenez’s allies in the House to avoid shielding him from the law since he has submitted himself to the US authorities when he went to the US Embassy last week.
He also said any law enforcement agent or even a private citizen could arrest Jimenez if he refused to follow the court order.
Jimenez faces up to five years in jail if convicted on any of the fraud and tax evasion cases leveled against him in the US in 1999.
He is also wanted for making illegal campaign contributions to the Democratic Party.
Jimenez claimed he built up a fortune running a computer components distribution business in the US and Latin America after emigrating from the Philippines.
He returned to Manila in May 1998 and befriended then Vice President Joseph Estrada who was later elected president.
Estrada named Jimenez as his economic adviser and described him as a "corporate genius" for his advise in the sale of government share holdings in a number of large corporations.
Jimenez eventually won a seat in the House in last year’s elections, while Estrada was ousted, arrested and put on trial for corruption.
According to the US indictments, Jimenez, then chief executive and majority share holder of the Miami-based Future Tech International Inc., and a number of employees were involved in various ways to defraud
the US Internal Revenue Service.
Jimenez and his employees also allegedly conspired to defraud the Federal Election Commission through the illegal use of corporate money to make campaign contributions to certain candidates in the 1996 US elections.
Manila International Airport Authority general manager Edgardo Manda insisted yesterday that the Lualhati Foundation Inc. merely assisted the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) implement its program on streetchildren.
In a statement, Manda, former head of the foundation, also clarified that the President and her husband, lawyer Jose Miguel Arroyo, were neither members nor officers of the foundation which was created in 1993.
He said the foundation still supports the DSWD’s "Ahon Bata" and "Ahon Pamilya" projects by organizing skills training programs and giving donations.
Manda said the DSWD sought Lualhati’s assistance pertaining the streetchildren due to "very limited resources."
Among the foundation’s recipients were Fr. Rocky Evangelista of Tuloy sa Don Bosco Streetchildren Village, a boy’s town in Bacolod City and several other charitable organizations.
At the same time, Manda denied allegations that the foundation did not submit financial statements to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bureau of Internal Revenue from 1993 to 1999.
He asserted that the foundation’s documents were intact and open to public scrutiny. — With Cecille Suerte Felipe, AFP report
Malacañang dropped yesterday its compromise agreement with Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez, under which the embattled legislator will voluntarily leave by Dec. 26 to face criminal charges in the United States.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye hinted that if Jimenez violates a court order for him to leave after Christmas, the government will pursue the extradition proceedings against Jimenez and forcibly ship him out of the country.
Manila Regional Trial Court Judge Guillermo Purganan has directed Jimenez to "voluntarily depart for the US not later than Dec. 26."
"In the event respondent (Jimenez) fails to do so, the order shall serve as a warrant for his immediate arrest and delivery to the appropriate US authorities," Purganan stated in his one-page order.
Meanwhile, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Reynaldo Wycoco said nothing has changed in their position that they will have to arrest Jimenez by midnight of Dec. 26 if he refuses to leave in accordance with the agreement and as ordered by the court.
Bunye assailed Jimenez for reneging on his promise to depart, which would have made it unnecessary for the government to pursue the extradition process against the congressman.
Bunye was reacting to Jimenez’s statement the other day saying he would rather die than leave the Philippines after he accused President Arroyo of duping him for not sacking Justice Secretary Hernando Perez in violation of their agreement.
For his part, Presidential Spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao said Jimenez would be mocking the law if he refuses to comply with an order of the court "which already demonstrated its humanitarian concern for him by allowing him to spend Christmas here."
Jimenez told reporters the other day that he changed his mind about voluntarily leaving for the US when it became clear to him that Perez, who has gone on a 30-day leave, would return to his post on Dec. 27.
Bunye said Jimenez’s sudden change of heart showed that "he is not a man of his word," adding that everything Jimenez has said and done were meant to stave off his extradition.
"Actually, there’s a deal that he will leave after Christmas, and they themselves talked with the US Embassy, with Speaker (Jose) de Venecia," Bunye said.
"So if he’s not leaving, the deal is off and the normal extradition process will be implemented," Bunye added.
He said Malacañang can now see through Jimenez’s ploys and would take steps to extradite him if he did not leave voluntarily as promised.
Bunye also said Jimenez has obviously become desperate in the face of imminent arrest, extradition and prosecution in the US.
He pointed out that there was no more legal impediment to the extradition process because of a recent Supreme Court order junking his petition for bail.
At the same time, Bunye said Jimenez has no right to demand the removal of Perez because the lawmaker failed to produce concrete evidence to prove his accusations against the justice secretary.
"It is not Perez but the US justice department, which filed the charges against him, that is his adversary here," Tiglao stressed.
He added that Perez has been steadfast in adhering to the country’s extradition treaty with the US.
"If the DOJ (Department of Justice) cannot implement an international treaty, we will be the laughing stock of the world and the community of nations will judge the Philippines as a country where there is no rule of law," Tiglao said.
Bunye said Mrs. Arroyo approved Perez’s request for a 30-day leave to be able to defend himself against verbal attacks by Jimenez and his closest ally in the House of Representatives, Bulacan Rep. Wilfrido Villarama.
"As far as we know, the conditions before he left have remained unchanged. Unless there are other extraordinary circumstances, Secretary Perez will return (to his post)," Bunye said.
"Everybody, including Jimenez, should follow the law," lawyer Leonard de Vera of Plunder Watch said.
"He should not toy around with the legal process. The law should not be based on his whims and caprices," De Vera stressed.
De Vera called on Jimenez’s allies in the House to avoid shielding him from the law since he has submitted himself to the US authorities when he went to the US Embassy last week.
He also said any law enforcement agent or even a private citizen could arrest Jimenez if he refused to follow the court order.
Jimenez faces up to five years in jail if convicted on any of the fraud and tax evasion cases leveled against him in the US in 1999.
He is also wanted for making illegal campaign contributions to the Democratic Party.
Jimenez claimed he built up a fortune running a computer components distribution business in the US and Latin America after emigrating from the Philippines.
He returned to Manila in May 1998 and befriended then Vice President Joseph Estrada who was later elected president.
Estrada named Jimenez as his economic adviser and described him as a "corporate genius" for his advise in the sale of government share holdings in a number of large corporations.
Jimenez eventually won a seat in the House in last year’s elections, while Estrada was ousted, arrested and put on trial for corruption.
According to the US indictments, Jimenez, then chief executive and majority share holder of the Miami-based Future Tech International Inc., and a number of employees were involved in various ways to defraud
the US Internal Revenue Service.
Jimenez and his employees also allegedly conspired to defraud the Federal Election Commission through the illegal use of corporate money to make campaign contributions to certain candidates in the 1996 US elections.
In a statement, Manda, former head of the foundation, also clarified that the President and her husband, lawyer Jose Miguel Arroyo, were neither members nor officers of the foundation which was created in 1993.
He said the foundation still supports the DSWD’s "Ahon Bata" and "Ahon Pamilya" projects by organizing skills training programs and giving donations.
Manda said the DSWD sought Lualhati’s assistance pertaining the streetchildren due to "very limited resources."
Among the foundation’s recipients were Fr. Rocky Evangelista of Tuloy sa Don Bosco Streetchildren Village, a boy’s town in Bacolod City and several other charitable organizations.
At the same time, Manda denied allegations that the foundation did not submit financial statements to the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bureau of Internal Revenue from 1993 to 1999.
He asserted that the foundation’s documents were intact and open to public scrutiny. — With Cecille Suerte Felipe, AFP report
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