Chavez hits Ombudsman for failing to finish Nani probe

Former Solicitor General Francisco Chavez slammed the Office of the Ombudsman yesterday for "sleeping on the job" after it failed to finish its probe of the alleged money-laundering case against former justice secretary Hernando Perez by the end of last year, as it had earlier promised.

"As usual, the Ombudsman is sleeping on the job. Our problem is that it is not a short nap but a long slumber," Chavez said in a phone interview.

Chavez had filed a graft complaint against Perez before the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with his alleged involvement in money-laundering.

Chavez also attacked the Office of the Ombudsman for its apparent "callousness" in not expediting its investigation, not only with the case of Perez but also with the case of former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante.

Chavez had also filed a graft complaint against Bolante before the Office of the Ombudsman for alleged involvement in the fertilizer fund scam.

"The callousness of the Office of the Ombudsman is too thick even for public opinion. Kapalan talaga ng mukha," he said.

Chavez also said that at present, the country is being run by a "syndicate" bent on protecting itself by placing key people in key government positions.

"We have a syndicate masquerading as a government. It has ensured that the right people are placed in government to protect it," he said.

Last Nov. 19, Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez told reporters that it will complete its probe on Perez before the end of 2006.

She said the Office of the Ombudsman’s Preliminary Adjudication and Monitoring Office had already submitted Perez’s case to her office for decision and resolution.

The controversy that allegedly linked Perez to money-laundering activities started on March 5, 2001, when account number 338118 was opened with the EFG Bank SA’s branch in Geneva, Switzerland, in the name of Filipino citizens Rosario S. Perez and Ramon C. Arceo Jr.

Reports said that a day later, on March 6, $1 million was deposited in the account, the money coming from the account of Ernest Escaler at the Coutts (Schweiz) AG Hong Kong.

A little over two weeks later, on March 27, 2001, another account, number 33128, was opened in EFG Bank SA, this time in the name of Ernest Escaler.

Perez and Arceo then executed a power of attorney in favor of Hernando B. Perez, Rosario’s husband. Their account was closed on Oct. 31, 2001.

The account of Rosario Perez and Arceo was credited in May 2001 with $699,985 from different investments. Two important transfers took place from its last transaction in favor of a company named Swordtail Limited, which holds a bank account in Hong Kong.

According to reports, the account was first opened in Coutts Bank in Hong Kong, transferred to another bank in Singapore then to the EFG bank in Geneva.

Perez had earlier insisted on his innocence and presented to reporters a copy of a letter purportedly from Coutts Bank and signed by Coutts Head of Private Banking Esther Heer and Hong Kong branch manager Chris Burton denying the existence of an account where his name is cited as "beneficial owner."