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[av_heading heading=’Sandigan clears 3 capitol execs accused of graft’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’18’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
BY GLENDA S. TAYONA
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Friday, March 2, 2018
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ILOILO City – The Sandiganbayan Special Fifth Division dismissed the graft complaint filed against three Iloilo provincial capitol department heads for alleged overpayments reaching P4 million for unconsumed electricity in 2007 during the Tupas administration.
In a 23-page resolution dated Feb. 20, 2018 penned by Associate Justice Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega, anti-graft court granted the demurrer to evidence filed by Ramie Salcedo (General Services Office head), Lyd Tupas (provincial accountant) and Sandra Bionat (assistant department head).
A demurrer to evidence is a motion to dismiss a case for lack of sufficient evidence to convict the accused. Based on the Rules on Criminal Procedure, the accused may file a demurrer after the prosecution rests its case.
According to the Special Fifth Division, manifest partiality was not present in the capitol case.
The evidence adduced by the prosecution did not prove that the accused favored one party that was similarly situated with other parties, it said.
In fact, there was only one recipient or beneficiary of the disbursement voucher approved and signed by the accused, electricity supplier Green Core, it added.
The court was of the belief that none of the accused acted in evident bad faith considering that the whole process of facilitating the release of the disbursement voucher followed the usual process.
There was nothing irregular nor did it pass extraordinary means, it added.
This regularity of process, according to the court, was affirmed by the testimony of witness Nilo Castromayor Castigador who stated, among others, that the electric bills were paid based on a valid contract.
Moreover, the court noted the absence of evident bad faith.
“The prosecution was not able to present any evidence that would lead to the conclusion that any of the accused profited or benefitted from the processing of the payment of the electric bills,” part of the Special Fifth Division ruling stated.
WHAT WENT BEFORE
On Sept. 26, 2007 the Tupas administration contracted the National Power Corp. (Napocor) for electricity supply in anticipation of the proposed Iloilo Multipurpose Convention Center adjacent to the provincial capitol.
A little over four years after, on Dec. 25, 2011, Green Core assumed as electricity supplier.
“The supply contract provided for an increase in the contracted energy from 185,000 kWh (kilowatt-hours) per month to 400,000 kWh per month,” said the Ombudsman.
Green Core was paid close to P6 million, representing the contracted energy of 1,084,814.50 kWh, but Iloilo’s actual energy consumption was only 515,180.50 kWh, worth only P1.88 million, it said.
The proposed Iloilo Multipurpose Convention Center, however, did not materialize.
In 2009 then governor Niel Tupas Sr. requested for an adjustment and reduction of the contracted energy to only 17,000 kWh per month, but Green Core applied the adjusted energy supply only from June 26, 2010 to Dec. 25, 2011.
Green Core was thus paid the amount representing the contracted energy of 1,084,814.50 kWh even though the actual energy consumption was only 515,180.50 kWh.
According to the Ombudsman, the power supplier was given P5.88 million although the province’s actual consumption amounted to only P1.88 million, resulting to an overpayment of almost P4 million covering the billing period December 2009 to April 2010.
‘NO BAD FAITH’
The Special Fifth Division stated: “(T)he fact that there was an appropriation meant that the 2007 contract entered into by the late governor with Napocor was valid and even if ,for the sake of argument, the contract was unauthorized, the fact that there was an appropriation for the payment of the electricity bills for the duration of the 2007 contract meant the same was ratified by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.”
“From this alone, it cannot be said that there was evident bad faith because the whole process of the disbursement of public funds was in accordance with the Resolution, the official and usual procedure of the provincial government,” the court stated.
The court added there was also no evidence that the accused devised a scheme to unduly favor Green Core.
“What is clear from the evidence presented is that the accused simply exercised their legitimate powers and duties under the Local Government Code. The presumption of regularity in the performance of official duties on the part of the accused was not overcome by the insufficient evidence presented by the prosecution, and for that, the latter’s case should necessarily fail,” the anti-graft court ruled./PN
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