The Sandiganbayan has rejected the plea of former Iloilo 5th District Rep. Niel "Junjun" C. Tupas Jr. to file a motion to dismiss his graft and malversation cases involving alleged misuse of his P4.8 million Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) in 2008 due to alleged weakness of the prosecution’s evidence.
In a resolution issued by its fourth division, the anti-graft court said that “at this time, the Court has sufficient reason to believe that the prosecution is on the right track in establishing and substantiating the material allegations in the foregoing information unless derailed by competent evidence by the accused.”
It said, “it is therefore axiomatic for this Court to comply with the obligatory principle of fair play and afford the accused (Tupas) his day in court to present countervailing evidence to defend himself.”
A demurrer to evidence is a pleading filed by an accused in a criminal case to dismiss the charge on alleged weakness of the prosecution’s evidence. It is filed with the approval of the court. If granted, the charge is dismissed and the dismissal is tantamount to an acquittal. If denied, the accused has to undergo trial to present evidence in his defense.
Tupas has been charged with graft and malversation through falsification of public documents for awarding P4,365,000 and P485,000 to Kabuhayan at Kalusugan Alay sa Masa Foundation, Inc. (KKAMFI) in two separate Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs).
The prosecution said Tupas selected the non-government organization as the "project partner" in the implementation of livelihood projects for municipalities of the 5th district of Iloilo, but he did so in disregard of the appropriation law and its implementing rules and regulations.
At the same time, the prosecution alleged that KKAMFI was unaccredited and unqualified to undertake the projects.
Tupas was charged together with former National Agribusiness Corporation (NABCOR) President Alan Javellana, former General Services Unit head Romulo Relevo, former Accountant Ma. Julie Villaralvo-Johnson, and private individual Marilou Antonio, project coordinator of KKAMFI.
In his motion to file a demurrer to evidence, Tupas said the pieces of evidence against him are not sufficient to sustain a verdict of guilt. He said his only participation in the transaction were his acts of requesting the Department of Agriculture (DA) and recommending KKAMFI as a project partner.
His recommendatory acts, he said, neither caused undue injury to any party nor gave unwarranted benefits based on the evidence presented by the prosecution.
His motion was denied in a resolution written by Associate Justice Lorifel L. Pahimna with the concurrence of Fourth Division Chairperson Alex L. Quiroz and Associate Justice Bayani H. Jacinto.