DOJ to probe resolution leak on LTO case

MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Leila de Lima wants an investigation into the leakage of the DOJ resolution clearing Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Virginia Torres in a two-year-old case involving purportedly the illegal registration of a vehicle.

At the same time, she expressed dismay over insinuations that her Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III was withholding the release of the resolution purportedly over personal issues with Torres, which he had already belied. “No one else is supposed to know the contents of the disposition of the resolution prior to its release. I will investigate that,” she said in an interview in last week’s leakage.

De Lima even warned of “judicial sanctions” against those responsible for the leakage of what she described as “internal matter.”

The STAR reported Wednesday that the DOJ already had a resolution clearing Torres in falsification of public document charge filed by the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group in 2009. Investigating fiscal Assistant Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Peter Ong released the resolution Thursday.

Apart from the leakage, the DOJ chief was also irked by the imputation against Baraan. “I can tell you in my word and honor, it (allegation against Baraan) was baseless. He had nothing to do with that case because that’s still at preliminary investigation level,” she said.

Baraan again belied the claim of a DOJ insider that he took the case folder which “recommended the dismissal of charges of falsification of documents under Article 171 of the Revised Penal Code” following findings of the inter-agency clearing Torres in the same case. “That is totally and absolutely false. The story is foolish and outlandish. I have nothing to do with that case,” he said in an interview.

Baraan also denied the insinuation that he was being personal against Torres, who has been in conflict with businessman Cesar Quiambao of LTO’s IT provider Stradcom Corp.

He believes the allegation aims to discredit the findings of their fact-finding panel against Torres in connection with the illegal takeover of Stradcom in December last year.

“I have nothing personal against Torres. The one imagining that is sick in mind. The story is being stretched too far. Even the entire provincial government of Pangasinan that has no inkling about this is being dragged into this issue,” he lamented.

Baraan denied that he has links with Quiambao, “Cesar Quiambao is from Pangasinan while Nestor Quiambao, who is the alleged cousin, is from La Union. I just learned today that the two are not related.”

But he argued that even if the two Quiambaos were related, it had nothing to do with the falsification case against Torres since the Stradcom takeover is completely a different matter.