Sandiganbayan orders release of Greggy Araneta’s assets

MANILA, Philippines — The anti-graft court Sandiganbayan has ordered the release of the sequestered assets of businessman Gregorio “Greggy” Araneta III in connection with a pending P200-billion civil forfeiture case filed by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) against the Marcoses in 1987.

In a resolution promulgated on Jan. 14 and obtained by reporters yesterday, the court’s Special Fourth Division granted Araneta’s “motion for release of sequestered properties” which he filed on June 17.

The court found merit in Araneta’s argument that since there is no longer any pending proceedings against him, the PCGG must release his sequestered properties, particularly his assets in some corporations.

The court cited the finality of its Dec. 6, 2005 ruling dropping Araneta from among the respondents in Civil Case No. 0002 which the PCGG filed against the Marcoses in 1987.

Araneta is the husband of Irene Marcos, youngest daughter of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and former first lady and incumbent Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos.

The court said its ruling dropping Araneta from the case was affirmed by the Supreme Court in a decision dated Feb. 8, 2012, in which the high tribunal only retained Imelda and her children Imee, Bongbong and Irene as respondents in the subject civil case.

“Wherefore, in view of the foregoing, movant Gregorio Araneta III’s motion for release of sequestered properties is granted... Accordingly, plaintiff (PCGG) is directed to release to Gregorio Araneta III only the said sequestered properties strictly in accordance with the abovementioned Supreme Court decision,” the Special Fourth Division said.

The resolution was penned by division chairman Associate Justice Alex Quiroz with the concurrence of Associate Justices Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega and Zaldy Trespeses.

Among those ordered released by the court were Araneta’s “corporate assets, properties and shares of stocks” with IMEXCO Enterprise Inc. and Asialand Development Corp.

The court assured the PCGG that the lifting of the writ of sequestration on Araneta’s properties “will not necessarily be fatal to the main case” against the Marcoses.

“The effect of the lifting of the sequestration will merely be the termination of the government’s role as conservator. In other words, the PCGG may no longer exercise administrative or housekeeping powers, and its nominees may no longer vote the sequestered shares to enable them to sit in the corporate board of the subject company,” the court said.

Filed by the PCGG in July 1987, the information of the case has undergone three amendments until 1998.

Based on the amended case information, Mrs. Marcos and her husband illegally amassed from government coffers a total of P200 billion during the martial law period.

The PCGG said the Marcos couple’s illegal amassing of wealth was done through the confiscation of large private enterprises “particularly those belonging to the opponents of the Marcos regime; conversion of government-owned and controlled corporations into private enterprises; awarding of various government contracts to their relatives, business associates and dummies; and misappropriating to themselves funds from government financial institutions, including donations and loans from foreign countries.”

Civil Case No. 0002 is among the 43 civil cases that the PCGG filed at the Sandiganbayan against Mrs. Marcos and her children after her husband’s ouster in 1986 through the EDSA People Power Revolution.

The Sandiganbayan had earlier dismissed 19 of the cases, one was indefinitely archived, while 23 others, including Civil Case No. 0002, remain pending.

Based on the Fourth Division’s records, Civil Case No. 0002 was submitted for decision as of August.