Eleven former officials of Mountain Province and a private individual have been convicted of graft by the Sandiganbayan in the irregular procurement of a vehicle in 2006.
Found guilty were former accountant Theodore A. Marrero, provincial health officer Nenita D. Lizardo, provincial nurse Helen K. Macli-ing, bids and awards committee (BAC) chairman Paulo P. Pagteilan and members Lily Rose T. Kollin, Florence R. Gut-omen, Edward B. Likigan, and Soledad Theresa F. Wanawan.
Also found guilty were BAC budget officer II Jerome M. Falingao, executive assistant Abdon A. Imingan, technical inspection member Abelard T. Pachingel and private individual Ronald C. Kimakim, owner of Ronhil Trading, Inc.
They were sentenced to a prison term ranging from six to eight years with perpetual disqualification from holding public office. The court also ordered the forfeiture of their retirement or gratuity benefits under the law.
The case against their co-accused, former governor Maximo B. Dalog, had been dismissed on account of his death in June 2017.
The court found that the former officials purchased a Mitsubishi L-300 Versa Van at P843,700.91 on March 29, 2006 despite irregularities in the procurement process, such as specifying the brand of vehicle to be purchased and deviating from the purpose of procurement.
The prosecution said that undue injury was caused to the government in the amount of P87,700.91 which represented the difference between the amount paid to Ronhil and the lesser amount stated in the Vehicle Sales Invoice and Delivery Receipt.
The court said that manifest partiality and evident bad faith were all present in the transaction and that the prosecution successfully proved that the accused circumvented the procurement process stated in Republic Act No. 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act.
It pointed out that while RA 9184 does not allow reference to brand names, the accused still deliberately referred to a particular brand and model of vehicle in the procurement documents.
"All of the accused, consisting of the end-user representative and BAC officials, willingly turned a blind eye to the apparent violation of the procurement law by making reference to a specific brand and model of vehicle," it said.
"From the time the accused discovered the irregularities and before the acceptance of the subject vehicle, they had the opportunity to reject the bid, declare a failure or bidding, or not award the contract. Despite such an opportunity, the accused continued the procurement process,” it also said.
The 62-page decision was written by Associate Justice Ronald B. Moreno with the concurrence of Presiding Justice Amparo M. Cabotaje-Tang and Associate Justice Bernelito R. Fernandez.