MANILA, Philippines - Former Solicitor General Francisco Chavez yesterday denied resorting to forum shopping to hold former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo accountable for the alleged misuse of funds of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).
In a statement, Chavez said the plunder complaint he filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) should not be dismissed just because he filed a similar one in the Office of the Ombudsman in May 2004.
“In 2007, the Ombudsman’s underlings issued a resolution declaring its investigation closed and terminated without prejudice to the case’s re-filing or reopening.
This matter was alleged in the recitals of the complaint I filed with the DOJ, as well as the reason why the case was being filed with the DOJ and not re-filed at the office of the Ombudsman,” he said.
He also denied the allegation that he did not disclose the resolutions of the ombudsman so the DOJ would entertain his new complaint.