Criminal complaints have been filed before the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) against Dioscoro E. Esteban Jr., officer-in-charge (OIC) of the PEA Tollways Corp. (PEATC), for "unlawful actions" in allegedly misrepresenting the firm and reportedly maligning the Cavitex Infrastructure Corporation (CIC) as a "corrupt" private firm.
The complaint was filed by CIC through Atty. Criselda M. Funelas, head of the legal services.
In its complaint, CIC asked the OMB to hold Esteban criminally liable for perjury under Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC), usurpation of authority under Article 171 of the RPC, slander under Article 358 of the RPC, and for violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
PEATC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Philippine Reclamation Authority (PRA), formerly Public Estates Authority, and attached to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
In her complaint-affidavit received by the OMB last May 6, Funelas said that the CIC is responsible for the design, construction, and financing of the Manila-Cavite Toll Expressway Project (MCTEP), now more popularly known as Cavitex, while PRA will be responsible for operating it.
She said that the legal issues against Esteban started when he terminated the legal services of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) effective Jan. 31, 2024. The OGCC, for its part, rejected the termination in a letter dated Feb. 19, 2024 and cited the authority of the OGCC to act as statutory legal counsel and primary law office of government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs), she said..
Despite the rejection of the termination, Esteban still hired and engaged the legal services of four private law practitioners -- lawyers Sylvester P. Golez, Antonio Enrile Inton Jr., Jaime R. Tejero III, and Tyronne O. Alvarez, Funelas said.
She alleged that Esteban, through the PEATC, sent a demand letter to CIC. He demanded full transition of operations and maintenance (O&M) to PEATC, transfer point of sale (POS) to and register them under the name of PEATC, and transfer all of contracts for goods and services required in the O&M of the project to PEATC, among many other things.
The PEATC and CIC went back and forth with this issue until the private lawyers of PEATC filed a Petition for Mandamus on March 15, 2024 against CIC and Funelas before the Court of Appeals (CA).
Funelas said in her complaint that Esteban and his lawyers later even went on a press tour, "relentlessly spreading false and misleading assertions... to the substantial detriment of CIC." Esteban even accused CIC of being a "corrupt" private corporation, she said.
Funelas told the OMB that Esteban had no authority to act on behalf of PEATC, particularly in filing the Petition for Mandamus, because he is merely appointed as OIC. "In fact, his verification is not supported by a Secretary's Certificate or any other document explicitly authorizing him to represent PEATC in the petition filed," she said.
Esteban was also accused of "acting beyond his authority" when he fired the OGCC and hired the legal services of four private practitioners. As for the defamatory statements he made against the CIC, Funelas said that Esteban should be charged with slander.
"Respondent's imputation of corruption against CIC was made with malice and with the intent to cause dishonor, discredit, or contempt of CIC in order to stir public opinion against it while the petition is still pending," the complaint said.
Esteban could not be contacted for comment as of posting.