Mar wants Sandigan divisions increased

Sen. Manuel Roxas II recommended yesterday that the five divisions of the Sandiganbayan be increased to 15 to address the slow pace of litigation involving corrupt government officials and local executives.

Stressing the need for government to invest heavily in the fight against corruption to curb massive financial losses, Roxas proposed new legislation to reinforce the Sandiganbayan with more associate justices so that the anti-graft tribunal will be better able to accelerate the resolution of cases.

In Senate Bill 1970, Roxas sought to increase the present five divisions of the Sandiganbayan to 15, and to build up the court’s associate justices from 14 to 44 and add a presiding justice.

"One sure way to discourage corruption is to speed up the resolution of cases brought before the Sandiganbayan. Thus, it has become absolutely necessary for us to fortify and augment the anti-graft court," he said.

Sandiganbayan records reveal that, due to the heavy workload of each division, the tribunal takes an average of six years and 10 months to decide each case, Roxas said.

A total of 1,784 cases were pending with the anti-graft tribunal as of Dec. 31, 2004.

"The sheer volume of cases has made it impossible for the Sandiganbayan to promptly dispose of cases," Roxas pointed out.

"The numerous lifestyle checks and ill-gotten wealth investigations now being pursued by the Office of the Ombudsman will lead to new cases overwhelming the Sandiganbayan," he added.

Roxas’ call for the creation of new divisions in the graft court was seen as another move to support President Arroyo’s campaign against corruption in the various sectors of the government.

Various studies indicate government is losing about P160 billion to P240 billion annually to corruption.

"If we invest, say, P10 billion now to fight official cheating on all fronts, and we cut losses due to corruption by just 25 percent, this would mean P40 billion to P60 billion in cost-savings. This is a totally compelling return on investment," he said.

With more divisions, the Sandiganbayan would be able to hold continuous trials and promptly resolve cases, Roxas said. He added that the quick resolution of lawsuits would also reduce the opportunity for evidence tampering and the risk of fading memories on the part of witnesses.

Under Roxas’ proposal, the first 13 divisions of the enlarged Sandiganbayan will hold sessions in Metro Manila to handle cases filed before the tribunal from Luzon.

The last two divisions will hold sessions in Cebu City and Cagayan de Oro City to deal with cases filed before the Sandiganbayan from the Visayas and Mindanao.