By Czarina Nicole Ong
The Sandiganbayan Sixth Division has refused to let former Army Colonel Jessie Mario Borja Dosado off the hook with his sexual harassment case as it denied his motion to quash for lack of merit.
Dosado has been slapped with three counts of sexual harassment taking advantage of his position and inducing two women to perform or engage in sexual acts against their will.
(MANILA BULLETIN)
In his motion to quash, Dosado argued that he is a full colonel so the court has no jurisdiction over him. At the same time, his actions caused no damage to the government, so his charges do not fall under the jurisdiction of the anti-graft court.
The prosecution begged to differ as it filed its opposition and stated that sexual harassment falls under Section 4(b) of P.D. 1606, as amended by R.A. 10660.
For its part, the court found Dosado's motion devoid of merit since the Sandiganbayan exercises original jurisdiction to try cases involving crimes committed by officials of local government units.
"Here, the accused averred that he is a full colonel. Such rank is specifically included in Section 4a (1)of P.D. 1606, as amended by R.A. Nos. 7975 and 8249. Thus, regardless of his salary grade, the Sandiganbayan has jurisdiction over the present cases," the nine-page resolution read.
As to Dosado's argument that his actions do not constitute a crime committed in relation to his office, the Sandiganbayan believes he is wrong.
"The accused could not have allegedly committed the crimes were it not for the fact that ...were under his immediate supervision, and over whom he had authority, influence and moral ascendancy," the resolution read. "In other words, the official position held by the accused made it possible for him to have allegedly committed the crimes charged."
Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officer Rolando Cervantes earlier wrote in the charge sheets against Borja that he violated R.A. 7877 or the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995 in three separate occasions.
The first one took place on May 16, 2013 in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City, when he demanded that a subordinate employee, a female master sergeant who was assigned on a Detailed Service at the Philippine Army Procurement Center (PAPC), to watch him having sexual intercourse with a woman named "Miss Glacy."
He even asked her to join them in an orgy, and as a result, created "a hostile or offensive working environment" for Dosado's subordinate.
On October 22, 2013, Dosado solicited a sexual favor from a different subordinate employee - his secretary. Dosado asked her to wipe his back while he was naked, and told her to give him a bath.
Then on October 25, 2013, Dosado once again put his secretary in a compromising situation when he instructed her to apply lotion on his private part. He asked her lewd questions about how she felt while applying the lotion, and even told her to compare the size of his private part with that of a certain "Dennis."