EDITORIAL - Speed up this trial

Over two years after Carlos Garcia’s sons ran afoul of Customs laws in the United States, the Armed Forces of the Philippines affirmed the other day a military’s court’s guilty verdict on its former comptroller. Garcia, who retired with two stars, was found guilty of violating the Articles of War. He faces a separate case for the capital offense of plunder, which the Office of the Ombudsman has filed with the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court.

Garcia’s court-martial lasted about a year, with the AFP chief taking several months to review the recommendations and uphold the guilty verdict. With Malacañang hailing the decision, the President and commander-in-chief is unlikely to overturn the verdict. Compared with the court-martial of the Oakwood mutineers, Garcia’s military trial was quick. The Sandiganbayan should match that pace.

Garcia is the highest military officer to be court-martialed and prosecuted before a civilian court in connection with corruption. His case is seen as a watershed in the campaign for military reforms. Corruption in the AFP was one of the grievances aired by junior military officers who staged a short-lived mutiny in July 2003. At the end of that year, Garcia’s two sons were held by Customs authorities at the San Francisco Airport for failure to declare $100,000 in cash that they were bringing into the United States.

Their mother Clarita came to their rescue, allegedly detailing to US officials how suppliers dealing with the AFP gave her husband, at the time the comptroller, what amounted to fat commissions, which accounted for their wealth. The sons were released, but US officials alerted Manila about the incident. The Office of the Ombudsman got hold of the documents, checked and learned that Garcia’s declared net worth for 2003 was only P3.2 million, and went after him.

With such evidence, there is no excuse for Garcia’s trial to proceed at the usual leisurely pace that characterizes court proceedings in this country. Arrest warrants have been issued for Garcia, his wife and their three sons for amassing ill-gotten wealth estimated at P303.2 million. The AFP had initially shown reluctance to prosecute a two-star general. A civilian court should show no such reservations, and resolve this case as quickly as possible.