8 flood mess cases filed in court next month

MANILA, Philippines — Seven to eight criminal cases are being readied for filing with the Sandiganbayan by next month in connection with anomalous flood control projects, according to Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla.

He said the cases to be filed may include malversation of public funds, graft, or the complex crime of malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents.

“We have seven or eight cases that we can file already in Sandiganbayan before the end of November,” Remulla said in an interview with The STAR’s “Truth on the Line” on Wednesday.

With the huge amounts involved, the malversation cases will be non-bailable and could warrant life in prison, he said.

Remulla commended the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) for transmitting a report on its investigation to the ombudsman along with some pieces of evidence. The move, he said, will hasten the ombudsman’s preliminary investigation.

The ICI report covers the P289.5 million worth of flood control projects in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region 4-B through contractor Sunwest Inc. in 2024.

In its report, the ICI urged the ombudsman to determine appropriate charges against 18 public officials, including resigned congressman Zaldy Co.

“It is a good report. It is already backed by evidence. Our preliminary investigation is already ongoing. So we expect to be filing cases in the Sandiganbayan also, besides what’s to be filed in the RTC (regional trial court),” Remulla said.

Remulla said he has deputized the prosecutors of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to prosecute the five flood control cases in Bulacan involving public officials under Salary Grade 26 or below.

“The five flood control cases that they (DOJ prosecutors) investigated, I reverted them back to DOJ so that it will not undergo vetting again in the Office of the Ombudsman. I told them to direct (the cases) to the RTC,” Remulla said.

Section 2 of RA10660, which introduced amendments to the Sandiganbayan’s functions and structural organization, transferred to the RTCs the exclusive jurisdiction over cases that do not allege “any damage to the government or any bribery,” or “if the amount of the alleged damage to the government or bribery arising from the same or closely related transactions or acts does not exceed P1 million.”

Remulla said that for cases involving bigger amounts of funds and higher-ranking government officials, his office will file them with the Sandiganbayan by next month.

Asked what cases would be filed, Remulla said possibly multiple counts of malversation of public funds and malversation through falsification.

He said prosecuting a plunder case may be difficult under the current law, which requires the identification of the main plunderer who must have accumulated ill-gotten wealth of at least P50 million.

“I would still consult with the courts about this phenomenon of making plunder a very hard to convict case. Very few were convicted of plunder in the history of the Philippine (legal system),” Remulla said.

“So, if we can have other resort, if we can resort to other statutes to have this desired effect, we might as well do it now,” he added.

Remulla pointed out that conviction for multiple counts of malversation of public funds as well as for the complex crime of malversation through falsification is also punishable with life imprisonment or 20 to 40 years behind bars.

“It works well with ghost projects, I think. And because it’s ghost project, there’s definitely falsification and there’s malversation, that’s a sure thing,” he said in Filipino.

Plea bargain

He also said on “Truth on the Line” that he wants enlightenment from the Supreme Court and the Sandiganbayan on the possibility of entering into plea bargain deals with several congressmen who are open to restitution.

He said 67 incumbent and former congressmen may be involved in the flood control project anomalies, based on his office’s investigation.

“They will still have to plead to a lesser offense. But I would still have to talk to the Sandiganbayan on this. I will also consult with the Supreme Court. Maybe I’ll talk to Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen to discuss the metes and bounds of this [plea-bargain],” Remulla said.

Remulla said a majority of the lawmakers whom he dubbed as the “cong-tractors,” have already expressed intention to “come clean” and return to the government the amount that they had amassed from the scam.

“There are some congressmen,  ‘congtractors’ as we call them, who want to come clean and return [their loot]. So, the money that they have amassed, they must return it… There are rumored to be 67 of them and many of them, I think, are willing to come clean,” he said.

Asked if the ombudsman has any ballpark figure on the amount that can be recovered, Remulla said about “a few billion” pesos.

“Of course there will be some resistance [against plea bargain] for sure. For those who would want to continue with the trial of their cases, we are ready for that. We’re ready for the litigation. That’s what the office was created for. That’s why we have so many litigators. We have so many prosecutors,” he added.

At a briefing, DOJ spokesman Polo Martinez said their prosecutors aim to finish the probe on the five “ghost” flood control projects within a month.

“We will try to finish everything within a month. We’ve already deputized the panel of DOJ prosecutors to conduct preliminary investigation so it can go straight to the courts if it meets the standard,” Martinez said in Filipino.

He also said those wanting to be state witnesses must first return the stolen government funds before they can be considered.

“It’s just like applying for a job or school, there are conditions set. If you’re not ready to meet the conditions, it’s up to you. But we also cannot give you what you’re asking for,” he said.

He cited that Section 5(d) of Republic Act No. 6981, which requires that an applicant for state witness must comply with his legal obligation under the law, which is the restitution of stolen government funds.

“We can proceed if the evidence is sufficient, we can proceed with trial. If their statements cannot provide a direct link to the crimes, to the anomalies conducted, (they’re) not imperative. Their statements are not that important, they’re not crucial,” Martinez said.

Jail ready

Meanwhile, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla inspected the Pasay City jail yesterday to check on its readiness to accommodate some of the officials who may be ordered detained by the courts while on trial for involvement in the flood control mess.

“If they are indicted in court, they will be placed here as regular inmates,” Remulla said. “There is no longer a La Catedral, no longer a place for rich people to live inside the prison. The law is the law and we will follow it, no matter how painful it gets for anyone,” he added.

The Pasay City Jail, designed to accommodate 103 inmates, currently holds 964 inmates, or a congestion rate of more than 800 percent.

Remulla said the accused would be detained in common cells without air conditioning.

“I gave strict instructions that no one is allowed to place an inmate in the warden’s office,” he said, noting that the warden’s office is the only air-conditioned area in the facility.

He also clarified that the PNP Custodial Center at Camp Crame would not be used as detention center for those found involved in the flood-control controversy.

To ensure transparency, he said the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology will implement CCTV monitoring of jail personnel and operations.-  Mark Ernest Villeza, Daphne Galvez