MANILA, Philippines — Despite tough hurdles, the government will pursue its investigation of the multibillion-peso Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra vowed yesterday.
Guevarra said he has directed the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to continue the fact-finding probe despite difficulties in gathering evidence and after dropping the accused mastermind, detained businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles, from the witness protection program (WPP).
“The NBI is having some difficulty because some original documents could not be found anymore for some reason, I was informed. But that should not really be an obstacle because these documents can be reconstructed and could still be retraced somehow,” Guevarra bared in an interview.
“So although it might be more difficult this time around compared to the first batches, that is not really a problem because there is something that could be done about it,” he added.
As for Napoles, Guevarra said the detained businesswoman could still cooperate with the investigation even without WPP coverage. “Ms. Napoles can give more information with or without protection.”
The justice secretary explained the NBI could even reach out to Napoles in building the new PDAF cases.
“If part of the evidence gathered would involve voluntary information from Miss Napoles, then so be it. I will leave it to the NBI to find out if it would be necessary to go out of their way to talk to Napoles. We do not want to leave any stone unturned. So for whatever it is worth, we’ll do so,” he added.
Asked if Napoles could be considered a state witness, Guevarra pointed out that only the ombudsman could address such question.
“Considering her as a state witness belongs to the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman because cases for violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act will eventually be filed with the Sandiganbayan, so the prosecutor there is not the Department of Justice (DOJ) but the Ombudsman, the special prosecutor,” he explained.
Guevarra reiterated that he had to drop Napoles from WPP coverage because she does not need protection.
“We cannot do that. We cannot move her to a safe house even if she wanted to because the courts already have control over the case and over her person,” he added.
The DOJ, under former justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II, placed Napoles under WPP coverage. But she remained in detention at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig and was not transferred to the custody of the WPP.
Under Republic Act 6981 or the Witness Protection Act, before a person is admitted into the WPP, he or she shall execute a sworn statement describing in detail the manner in which the offense was committed and his or her participation therein.
If after examination of the person, his or her sworn statement and other relevant facts, the DOJ is satisfied that the requirements of the law and its implementing rules are met, then the applicant can be admitted into the WPP for full coverage with several financial benefits.
Among the requirements of the law for a WPP applicant to qualify as state witness is that he or she must not be the most guilty of the alleged crime committed.
Napoles reportedly submitted an affidavit implicating several lawmakers and former executive officials, including former budget secretary Florencio Abad.
She supposedly tagged Abad as her “mentor” or the “instigator” of the scheme.
The DOJ, however, did not release her affidavit due to confidentiality under RA 6981.