Ombudsman upgrades probe on Cebu project

CEBU CITY — Based on the findings of the Commission on Audit (COA), the Office of the Ombudsman has upgraded into a criminal case its investigation into the alleged "highly suspicious" transactions in the implementation of the Metro Cebu Development Project (MCDP).

In upgrading the case, the anti-graft office named as respondents former Mayor Alvin Garcia, former MCDP project manager III Samuel Darza, former human resource management officer Rowena Rances, accountant Angelita Sungahid, Gorones Development Corp. and F.F. Cruz Inc. for alleged violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

With a budget of over P1.2 billion, the MCDP is a project funded by the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF) for the improvement and construction of arterial roads and causeway consisting of 57 kilometers of roads here and in Mactan and Mandaue City.

It was Darza himself who, on March 29, 2000, asked the Ombudsman to investigate the alleged questionable transactions in the implementation of the project that was started by Mayor Tomas Osmeña.

The COA, however, said Darza, who was the project manager, allegedly approved the disbursement voucher and recommended the approval of the advance payment of price escalation to Gorones Development Corp. amounting to P507,954.55. Garcia allegedly approved the payment.

Meanwhile, it was Rances who allegedly certified the disbursement voucher that the expense was necessary, lawful and incurred under her direct supervision.

For her part, Sungahid was said to have certified the disbursement voucher on the adequacy of available funds and that the expenditures were proper.

In its audit report, the COA said Darza and Rances allegedly approved the transaction and certified the necessity and lawfulness of paying F.F. Cruz Inc. for the cost of property that was affected by the widening of Plaridel Extension in the Mandaue Causeway.

However, under the memorandum of agreement with Mandaue City, F.F. Cruz was allegedly no longer the lawful owner of the property at the time the payment was made.

On April 11, 2000, the Ombudsman-Visayas referred Darza’s complaint to the COA for investigation. On Aug. 15, 2001, Fe Martinez, special audit officer of the COA central office, furnished the Ombudsman a copy of their audit report, which found several alleged irregularities in the implementation of the projects under the MCDP II.

The audit report recommended that appropriate charges be filed against those who made the payment of P507,954.55 to Gorones Development Corp. and P1,084,836.42 to F.F. Cruz Inc.

While the audit report which Martinez furnished did not identify the MCDP II officials who were responsible for the alleged irregularities, a letter dated Oct. 22, 2002 by Rogelio Tablang, local director of COA’s legal and adjudication office, provided the anti-graft office the names of the respondents and their supposed participation in the alleged irregularities.

Tablang said they have yet to resolve the requests for reconsideration that the respondents have filed.

But in a memorandum dated last Feb. 21, associate graft investigation officer Jocelyn Diapana recommended the upgrading of the complaint to a formal criminal case, saying the results of the audit showed that the respondents allegedly violated pertinent laws.

Diapana added that waiting for the outcome of the requests for reconsideration will cause "further delay in resolving the present complaint."

Diapana said the respondents’ requests for reconsideration could be incorporated in their counter-affidavits.

Ombudsman director Edgardo Canton and Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Primo Miro approved Diapana’s memorandum.

The audit on the MCDP was conducted by a five-man COA panel composed of Gina Gapas, Demetrio Ancheta Jr., Renato Rosales, Rexy Ramos and Heidi Mendoza. — Freeman News Service