GMA seeks dismissal of plunder case

MANILA, Philippines - Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday appeared before the Department of Justice (DOJ) to deny the accusations of plunder filed by former solicitor general Frank Chavez.

Arroyo, now representative of Pampanga’s second congressional district, filed her answer to the charges of Chavez last April accusing her of misusing P550 million in Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) funds.

Chavez alleged Arroyo had diverted the OWWA funds to her campaign war chest during the 2004 presidential elections.

Arroyo urged the DOJ to dismiss the case as she submitted her counter-affidavit before Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Theodore Villanueva.

Arroyo, wearing a blue suit, went in hours ahead of the scheduled preliminary investigation hearing apparently to avoid the media.

But when she stepped out of the prosecutor’s office, the former president was all smiles though she refused to answer questions from reporters, referring them to her lawyer Benjamin Santos.

Arroyo arrived at the DOJ around 8 a.m. and left 10 minutes later, greeted by some 100 supporters from Tondo, Manila.

Arroyo had skipped three hearings of the DOJ on the complaint, but was allowed extensions to file her answer.

Arroyo submitted her answer to the plunder complaint involving OWWA funds amid the revival of other controversies that hounded her nine-year administration – including poll fraud in the 2004 and 2007 polls – after key personalities in the scam like former election official Lintang Bedol surfaced.

Santos said the allegations against Arroyo were baseless and a mere rehash of an earlier case already handled by the Ombudsman.

Santos questioned the jurisdiction of the DOJ over the complaint, citing primary jurisdiction of the ombudsman.

He argued the DOJ had no jurisdiction over the complaint against Arroyo since the ombudsman had already acquired jurisdiction over the complaint.

“Once the ombudsman has acted on a case, it can no longer be reviewed by the DOJ,” Santos said.

“This is to avoid the situation where the ombudsman and the DOJ will be coming up with conflicting decisions, the purpose here is for the orderly administration of justice,” he said.

Records showed Chavez filed the same plunder case against Arroyo before the ombudsman in July 2004.

His complaint, however, was not resolved as the ombudsman terminated its investigation in 2007 because Arroyo, then President, enjoyed immunity from suit.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima maintained the DOJ has jurisdiction over the case and concurrent power to investigate graft cases as provided for in an existing memorandum of agreement with the ombudsman’s office.

De Lima, however, does not have a hand in preliminary investigation of complaints until they reach her office through petition for review.

Still, Arroyo’s counsel tackled the merits of the complaint and argued that the allegations had no basis and therefore should be dismissed.

Santos stressed complainant Chavez had failed to submit evidence to prove that the funds were really diverted to Arroyo’s campaign kitty.

Santos said alleging that there was allocation of the specified funds from OWWA is different from proving that the same funds were used for Arroyo’s campaign in 2004.

Apart from Arroyo, the other respondents in the complaint are former executive secretary Alberto Romulo, former health secretary Francisco Duque III, former OWWA administrator Virgilio Angelo, former OWWA board members Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and former labor secretary Patricia Santo Tomas, former undersecretary Manuel Imson, Mina Figueroa, Caroline Rogge, Victorino Balais, Gregorio Oca and Virginia Pasalo.

The other respondents have already submitted their respective answers to the charges during earlier hearings at the DOJ, all claiming the charges against them were baseless.

With Arroyo completing the submission of counter-affidavits from the respondents, the investigating DOJ panel directed Chavez to submit a reply before the complaint would be submitted for resolution.