The Sandiganbayan has decided to proceed with the trial of the graft cases filed against four former executives of Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) in the alleged anomalous sale of the bank’s P4.2 billion worth of shares in the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) in 2008.
In a resolution, the anti-graft court denied the motion for reconsideration filed by then LBP executives Albert C. Balingit, Cyril C. Del Callar, George J. Regalado, and Roberto S. Vergara on an earlier court ruling which junked their plea to dismiss the charges.
They were charged with violations of Section 3(g) of Republic Act No. 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, in connection with the sale of LBP’s Meralco shares to Global 5000 Investments, Inc. Prosecutors claimed the sale was grossly disadvantageous to the government.
They filed a motion to reconsider the earlier Sandiganbayan’s ruling which denied their plea to dismiss the charges as they insisted that their constitutional right to a speedy disposition of the case by the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) had been violated. They also claimed that the facts alleged in the criminal cases do not constitute an offense.
But the Sandiganbayan ruled there was no inordinate delay in the conduct of the preliminary investigation.
It said that while there was indeed a delay, the accused themselves played a role in causing it when they filed their motions for extension of time to file counter-affidavit.
They also caused further delay when they filed a second motion for reconsideration which is a prohibited pleading, the court said.
Contrary to what the accused was insisting on their motion for reconsideration, the court ruled that the charges sufficiently alleged all the elements constituting the crime charged.
"After a careful review of the arguments raised by the parties, the Court finds no sound reason to reverse its ruling," the resolution stated.
Presiding Justice Amparo M. Cabotaje-Tang wrote the 13-page resolution with the concurrence of Associate Justices Bernelito R. Fernandez and Ronald B. Moreno.