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Sandiganbayan accepts plea of 4 ex-Bohol officials to lesser offense
Sandiganbayan accepts plea of 4 ex-Bohol officials to lesser offense
Former members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Bohol Amalia R. Tirol, Ester Corazon J. Galbreath, Ma. Fe Camacho-Lejos, and Aster Apalisok-Piollo pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of frauds against the public treasury and skirted a possible graft conviction by the Sandiganbayan.
"Wherefore, in light of all the foregoing, accused... are hereby found guilty of frauds against the public treasury ... under paragraph 1 of Article 213 of the Revised Penal Code and are hereby sentenced to pay a fine of P1,000 each, with subsidiary penalty in case of insolvency," the court ruled.
Had they been found guilty of graft, they would have been sentenced to a prison term of not more than 10 years with perpetual disqualification to hold public office among other accessory penalties.
The prosecution alleged that on April 28, 2009, they gave Civic Merchandising Inc. (CMI) unwarranted benefits, advantages, or preference and caused undue injury to the government in the amount of P274,024.32 by enacting Sangguniang Panlalawigan Resolution No. 2009-226 that authorized the Land Bank of the Philippines to debit the charges from its account for the opening and negotiation fees of the letters of credit relative to the purchase of several brand new heavy equipment by the province.
It claimed it was done despite the prohibition against the payment of such fees under Section 42.5 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations Part A of Republic Act No. 9184, the Government Procurement Reform Act.
On Jan. 31, 2018, the Sandiganbayan dismissed the charges against them with a ruling that their right to speedy disposition of cases had been violated by the Office of the Ombudsman.
However, the prosecution elevated the case to the Supreme Court in a petition filed on Aug. 6, 2018. The SC granted the petition in a decision promulgated on Nov. 20, 2019.
The case was remanded to the Sandiganbayan. Last March 24, the four former provincial council members filed a motion for plea bargaining – a court procedure where an accused can enter a plea for a lesser offense for a more lenient penalty. The prosecution did not oppose the motion.
The anti-graft court’s decision was written by Associate Justice Efren N. De La Cruz with the concurrence of Associate Justices Geraldine Faith A. Econg and Edgardo M. Caldona.