BONGABON, Nueva Ecija – Former Mayor Allan Gamilla of Bongabon town in Nueva Ecija province has cited the recent dismissal of the graft case filed against him in 2020.
![Office of the Ombudsman.png](https://images.mb.com.ph/production/Office_of_the_Ombudsman_85fbefd14e.png)
As expected, truth and justice will emerge. No matter what the slander and criticism of my administration is, I remain silent because I know that the projects I have undertaken are to raise or elevate the standard of living for the people of Bongabon. And I will not ruin nor tarnish the name of my parents and my ancestors that I have long cherished, Gamilla said in a statement.
In a 10-page review order, the Ombudsman overturned its previous resolutions dated Aug. 7, 2023 and Feb. 16, 2024 that moved to indict Gamilla with two counts of graft over the alleged irregular purchase of a lot for the municipality’s cold storage facility in 2020 and rejected his motion for reconsideration, respectively.
“Accordingly, the criminal charges against Allan Gamilla are dismissed,” said the order dated Oct. 15, 2024.
The Ombudsman said that there was “no probable cause” to indict Gamilla for violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act “as it was not proven that the contract here entered for the purchase of the subject lot was grossly and manifestly disadvantageous to the government.”
The Ombudsman said the P4.7 million paid to lot owner Jocelyn Cena for the purchase of a 20,199-square-meter property was “in accordance to the valuation made by (licensed appraiser Romar) Pascua who pegged the value of the subject portion of the lot at P5.1 million.”
“Lastly, taking into consideration that the actual payment made to Cena was considerably lower to valuation made by the (Provincial Appraisal Committee) and Pascua, this negates the assessment that (Gamilla) gave unwarranted benefits to Cena or caused undue injury to the government.”
The Sandiganbayan has ordered the release of the P80,000 bail posted by Gamilla and lifted the hold-departure order against him.
The anti-graft court affirmed the resolution and dismissal of the decision with finality.