“What's in a name?”
This famous line from William Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet” became the subject of the Sandiganbayan’s deliberation when it tackled the motion of former Municipal General Services Officer Reymundo Mandawe Escamillan of Baganga, Davao Oriental, who had been acquitted of his graft charge.
Escamillan filed a manifestation with motion last May 21 and asked the court to correct the clerical error in the decision which listed his middle name as "Macayra" instead of "Mandawe."
As a result of this error, Escamillan said he had difficulty in his application for the withdrawal of the bail bond he posted and in the processing of his records with the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) for his release.
Initially, the anti-graft court said that a definitive final judgment, however erroneous, is no longer subject to change or revision. "Elsewise stated, a judgment that lapses into finality becomes immutable and unalterable," it said.
This is the case, the court said, even if the purpose of the modification or amendment is to correct perceived errors of law or fact. "This principle known as the doctrine of immutability of judgment is a matter of sound public policy, which rests upon the practical consideration that every litigation must come to an end," the court explained.
However, the court acknowledged that the dispositive part of a decision contains the judgment of the court, which must be "letter-perfect." Because of this, it granted the motion of Escamillan and modified his name correctly in its Aug. 26, 2020 decision.
"Where there is ambiguity caused by an omission or mistake in the dispositive portion of a decision, the court may clarify such ambiguity by an amendment even after the judgment had become final, and for this purpose it may resort to the pleadings filed by the parties...,the court’s resolution stated.
Associate Justice Kevin Narce B. Vivero wrote the eight-page resolution. Sixth division Chairperson Sarah Jane T. Fernandez and Associate Justice Karl B. Miranda concurred.
Escamillan was the co-accused of former Mayor Gerry Jovilla Morales, Municipal Engineer Roseller Nazareno Macayra, Municipal Accountant Emeritos Morales Jovilla, Municipal Treasurer Francisco Serra Jimenez Jr., and private individual Donald B. Villademosa, owner of Villtrade Marketing.
The graft charge stemmed from their involvement in Baganga's irregular purchase of tires in 2002.
The anti-graft court rendered a decision on Nov. 12, 2014 with a ruling that Morales, Macayra, Jovilla, and Jimenez "contributed in defrauding the government" through an unlawful procurement process.
On Aug. 26, 2020, Villademosa was also found guilty beyond reasonable doubt of graft and was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. Escamillan, on the other hand, was acquitted.