Lawyers of PEA whistle-blower withdraw from case

The lawyers of former Public Estates Authority director and road scam whistle-blower Sulficio Tagud Jr. are reportedly considering their withdrawal as his counsels in the plunder complaint he filed against other PEA officials due to "serious disagreements with certain ‘interest groups.’"

The lawyers, most of whom are supposedly members of Equal Justice for All (E-Just), are said to be "disgusted" that the case is being used by civil society and militant groups as a "springboard" for a "demolition job" against some officials of the Arroyo administration, according to a statement sent to The STAR.

The statement claimed that Pastor "Boy" Saycon of the Council on Philippine Affairs (COPA), Carol Araullo of PlunderWatch and Teddy Casiño of Bayan, "insist" on filing an amended complaint for plunder that would include Finance Secretary Jose Isidro Camacho, recently fired Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Dante Canlas and Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Avelino Cruz Jr.

The lawyers, led by E-Just spokesman Leonard de Vera, reportedly did not agree with them and were said to have threatened to withdraw as counsels from the case should the groups led by Saycon, Araullo and Casiño insist on what they want.

De Vera, however, denied the statement. "That’s not true. We will pursue the case against the PEA officials," he told The STAR in a phone interview.

Nevertheless, De Vera said Tagud’s lawyers are having "internal discussions" with the civil society and militant groups.

"But I’m not at liberty to divulge the details without the consent of my client," he said. De Vera is Tagud’s personal lawyer.

De Vera added that he is not aware if the lawyers of other complainants are thinking of withdrawing from the case.

However, he ascribes the report to the lack of unanimity among lawyers handling the plunder complaints, which he compared to a decision handed down by the Supreme Court – "not everyone agrees."

E-Just lawyers, however, are not likely to withdraw as Tagud’s lawyers because they are also complainants in the case, De Vera said.

Tagud and 15 non-government organizations (NGOs) — including E-Just, COPA, PlunderWatch and Bayan — filed plunder complaints against former PEA officials for their supposed involvement in the allegedly overpriced President Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard (PDMB) construction project in Pasay City.

Tagud revealed last September that the portion of PDMB built by contractor JD Legaspi Construction (JDLC) was reportedly overpriced by some P600 million. With this, he said the 5.1-kilometer PDMB cost some P1.1 billion, making it the most expensive road in the country.

The statement claimed that "Saycon’s group wanted to include the Cabinet officials in the case on the grounds that they caused the grant of authority to the PEA to secure a P1 billion loan from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS)."