Disini maintains innocence on Bataan nuke plant anomalies

MANILA, Philippines - Herminio Disini, the alleged crony of late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, maintained his innocence in the alleged anomalies in the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) after 36 years.

Legal counsel Jose Bernas said Disini has denied being a “go-between” in the controversial 1976 project and recently firmed up a damage suit before the Makati regional trial court against retired chief justice Artemio Panganiban, who made the accusation in his column in another newspaper.

In a reply to Panganiban’s counter-affidavit filed by Bernas last June 1, Disini said Panganiban maliciously ascribed to him “the commission of a crime, particularly corruption of a public official and the violation of the anti-graft law” by claiming he was brokering for Marcos’ personal interests in the BNPP project of Westinghouse.

Bernas attached to the pleading the decision of the Sandiganbayan last April clearing his client on charges of civil bribery and embezzlement in connection to the BNPP project.

He argued this ruling – along with decisions of US District Court for New Jersey, the US Circuit Court of Appeals, the International Court of Arbitration, the US-SEC and US Department of Justice, and the Ombudsman over the past 30 years clearing Disini in the case – only proved that the allegation of Panganiban was baseless and malicious.

Disini’s lawyer also cited lack of proof on allegations of his being a “close personal associate” of Marcos or that the Westinghouse contract was “highly onerous and disadvantageous.”

Disini questioned Panganiban’s failure to explain why he cited the objections of some officials to some provisions of the draft contract but not the reasons of others or of the President for approving it, the lawyer added.

Bernas said Disini filed the complaint against Panganiban before the Makati RTC last March 23 for his column entitled “After 35 Years Still Languishing” and not for any decision he rendered as a chief justice of the Supreme Court.

In his earlier letter, Bernas insisted his client was a commercial agent and it was reckless for the former justice to portray his client with shady character without providing any reason to support such claim.

He branded the allegations as “irresponsible, malicious, reckless and unfair.”

Disini also questioned the assertion of Panganiban that the BNPP was constructed at $2 billion and challenged him to quote the source of information.

They also denied the allegation that it was Disini who was behind the decision to “abandon” or not to operate the BNPP, citing lack of proof.

Bernas also said Panganiban’s decision in the Supreme Court in 2003 that ordered the filing of the criminal charges against Disini was based on a mere opinion on an interlocutory motion rendered by the New Jersey court on Sept. 20, 1991 regarding the BNPP built by Westinghouse that the former chief justice “maliciously misquoted.”

Disini’s lawyer stressed that status of the case should have been verified first before it was used as basis in an SC ruling.

Last April, the Sandiganbayan cleared Disini of the criminal charges involving BNPP project. However, the anti-graft court ordered him to return to the government the amount of $50,562,500, which he received as commissions from contractors of the project from 1976 to 1984.

Bernas said they are going to appeal this portion of the ruling.