Binay graft cases to proceed, court says
THE Sandiganbayan Third Division rejected the pleas of former Vice President Jejomar C. Binay and his son Junjun to suspend the graft case against them in connection with the overpriced Makati City Hall parking building. The Binays had asked the anti-graft court to dismiss the case, noting that they have pending appeals before the Commission on Audit (CoA), which had asked them to settle the P2.29 billion spent for the building.
“The pendency of the accused-movants’ appeal before the CoA does not divest the court of its jurisdiction to hear and try these criminal cases,” according to a copy of the court resolution dated Sept. 3.
The Sandiganbayan also denied the plea of the younger Mr. Binay to dismiss the graft charges.
Junjun had accused the court of forum shopping, arguing that the court had taken three simultaneous actions against him — his preventive suspension and eventual dismissal by the Ombudsman, the notices of disallowance issued by CoA, and his criminal cases. The court rejected his argument.
The construction of the controversial parking space started in 2007, when Jejomar Binay was still the city mayor. He was succeeded by his son after being elected vice president in 2010. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras
Sedition raps vs Robredo submitted for resolution
THE Department of Justice has wrapped up its probe of the sedition complaint against Vice President Maria Leonor G. Robredo and 35 others for allegedly seeking to destabilize the government by circulating videos linking President Rodrigo R. Duterte and his family to the illegal drug trade.
The panel of prosecutors have submitted the case for resolution.
Police filed inciting to sedition, cyberlibel, libel, estafa, harboring a criminal and obstruction of justice against the respondents in July.
Also sued was Peter Joemel Advincula, the self-confessed drug dealer who appeared in the videos that linked some members of the president’s family to illegal drugs.
Ms. Robredo and some of the respondents have answered the complaint.
Mr. Advincula first surfaced seeking legal assistance in filing charges against members of the drug syndicate he was formerly in. Later in May he surrendered to police for estafa charges and tagged the Liberal Party to be behind the propaganda.
Human Rights Watch has called on authorities to drop the “preposterous complaint,” saying it was an attempt to harass and silence critics of the government’s war on drugs.
A conviction for incitement to sedition is meted with a maximum penalty of six years in jail. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
Filipino priest charged in Papua New Guinea
A Filipino bishop based in Papua New Guinea is facing charges for revealing alleged police anomalies, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said in a statement yesterday.
Authorities charged Bishop Rolando Santos with defamation. The priest earlier posted a statement online accusing Papua New Guinea’s Mobile Squad Task Force of setting ablaze 19 houses in the community.
“I still have a case in court. But I am not worried,” the Catholic Church quoted Mr. Santos as saying in his letter.
The bishop was arrested along with acting Catholic education secretary Gregory Nimagale, who was released on bail.
Their case is expected to be finished by Sept. 30, according to a report by The National on Sept. 6. — Gillian M. Cortez
Lawmaker questions PAO’s forensic lab
Iloilo Rep. Janette L. Garin on Wednesday night recommended the merging of the forensic laboratories of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and Public Attorneys Office (PAO).
The lawmaker, a former Health secretary, questioned the legal basis of PAO’s forensic laboratory during debates on the Justice department’s budget at the House of Representatives.
Ms. Garin said PAO’s mandate is limited to administrative, financial management, special and appealed cases, legal research statistics and field services.
PAO chief lawyer Persida V. Rueda-Acosta earlier sued Ms. Garin over the deaths of children vaccinated with Dengvaxia.
During the budget debates, the lawmaker noted that Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo M. Ano himself had said that only the crime laboratories of the police and NBI are recognized by the courts.
Compostela Valley Rep. Ruwel S. Gonzaga agreed that a crime laboratory is not within the PAO’s charter.
“PAO shall be the principal law office of the government in extending free legal assistance to indigent persons in criminal, civil, labor, administrative and other quasi-judicial cases,” he said.
Ms. Garin suggested merging the National Bureau of Investigation and PAO laboratories to avoid wasting public funds. — Vince Angelo C. Ferreras
