Plunder charges filed vs Noy, Abad, Alcala

MANILA, Philippines - President Aquino, Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad, six other government officials and three private individuals were charged with plunder before the Office of the Ombudsman yesterday for their alleged involvement in the multibillion-peso pork barrel scam.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) filed the complaint against Aquino even though a sitting president is immune from suit, and urged Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales to investigate him for purposes of impeachment based on the so-called Doctrine of Qualified Political Agency. The doctrine states that “acts committed by the department secretaries under the executive department are deemed acts of the President.”

“Since there was no reprobation or disapproval coming from President Aquino regarding their actions, it can be easily inferred that the President acquiesced to such acts,” the KMP, led by deputy secretary-general Wilfredo Marbella, said, referring to Alcala and Abad’s alleged illegal acts.

“The department secretaries are his alter ego. Their act is an act of the President. Hence, his involvement in the scam should be investigated,” the KMP said.

The other respondents are Agriculture Undersecretary Antonio Fleta, head executive assistant in the Office of the Agriculture Secretary Arnulfo Mañalac, DA assistant secretaries Salvador Salacup and Ophelia Agawin, director of DA internal audit service Irene Alogoc, Budget Undersecretary Mario Relampagos, alleged pork barrel scam operator Janet Lim-Napoles and her brother John Reynald Lim, as well as whistle-blower Merlina Suñas.

Abad and Relampagos were charged as principals for their “indispensable cooperation” and for  “blindly” signing and releasing the Special Allotment Release Order and Notice of Cash Allocation to the DA “without conducting thorough review of the requests for issuance of SARO and NCA.”

Fleta, as DA undersecretary for administration and finance, was charged for allegedly being directly responsible for the accreditation of non-government organizations, including fake or bogus NGOs of Napoles.

KMP secretary-general Antonio Flores said the plunder charge against Aquino and his Cabinet officials is an “acid test” for the ombudsman.

“The ombudsman has the power to investigate even a sitting president as the Filipino people have every right to know his participation in the pork barrel scam. Aquino cannot hide under the mantle of presidential immunity,” he said in a statement.

Impeach Aquino

Sen. JV Ejercito said the President could also be impeached over the controversial Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).

Ejercito noted that the realignment of national government savings by the executive, which was coursed through legislators under the DAP, was unconstitutional.

“You cannot just realign to different programs. That is called malversation. If it is not in the budget approved by Congress, then it is illegal to use it for other purposes,” he said.  – With Marvin Sy, Ding Cervantes, Rhodina Villanueva, Paolo Romero, Mayen Jaymalin