Home NATIONWIDE Napoles, Reyes ‘di dapat inabswelto – Sandigan chief

Napoles, Reyes ‘di dapat inabswelto – Sandigan chief

MANILA, Philippines – Hindi dapat inabswelto si Janet Lim-Napoles at si Lucila “Gigi” Reyes, ang chief of staff ni dating Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.

Ito ang sinabi ni Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang, na bagamat hindi matibay ang ebidensyang ipinresenta laban kina Enrile, Napoles at Reyes para sa plunder conviction, ang dalawang babae naman ay guilty ng korapsyon ng isang opisyal ng pamahalaan, at direct bribery.

Matatandaan na nitong Biyernes, Oktubre 4, ay ibinasura ng Special Third Division ng Sandiganbayan ang mga reklamong inihain laban sa kanila sa paglilipat ng P172.8 milyon mula sa Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) ni Enrile, patungo sa bogus nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) ni Napoles mula 2004 hanggang 2010.

Sa 255 pahinang magkahiwalay na opinyon, sinabi ni Cabotaje-Tang na bagama’t sang-ayon siya sa exoneration sa plunder case, ang prosekusyon ay nakapagpatunay pa rin “by a preponderance of evidence” na si Napoles ay tumanggap ng nasa
P365,437,500 mula sa PDAF ni Enrile.

Dahil dito, si Napoles ay dapat na idineklarang guilty sa corruption of public officials, ipag-utos na ibalik ang naturang halaga at bigyan ng 10 taon pang pagkakulong.

“I … agree that accused Reyes and Napoles should be acquitted of the crime of plunder on the ground that the prosecution failed to establish that accused Reyes received from accused Napoles amounts which reached threshold P50 million set under (Republic Act) No. 7080 or the Plunder Law,” ani Cabotaje-Tang.

“However, I humbly submit that the ponencia (author) erred in ruling that accused Reyes and Napoles may not be convicted of other crimes on the basis that the variance doctrine finds no application in this case,” dagdag niya.

Ang tinutukoy ng Sandiganbayan chief ay ang pangunahing desisyon na tinintahan ni Associate Justice Ronald Moreno, na hindi nagpatunay sa dissent sa “glaringly insufficient and inconclusive” na ebidensya na ipinresenta sa prosekusyon.

Bilang rebuttal, sinabi ni Cabotaje-Tang na ang “legislative history of the Plunder Law, jurisprudence as well as the presence of overwhelming evidence on record.”

Tinukoy din niya ang testimonya ni Susan Garcia, na dating Commission on Audit director, na nagsabing may mga proyektong pinondohan ng siyam na special allotment release orders mula sa PDAF ni Enrile.

Ang pondo ay inilipat sa anim na NGOs ni Napoles para sa mga proyekto na napag-alaman bilang “ghost or fictitious.”

“Unrebutted testimonies from the whistleblower-employees also show that upon the express instructions of accused Napoles, her employees forged project proposals, lists of beneficiaries, accomplishment reports, receipts, reports of disbursements, inspection and acceptance reports and certificates of acceptance to make it appear that the utilization of the PDAF was properly undertaken when, in fact, no such deliveries were actually made,” aniya.

“Based on the aforesaid evidence, the prosecution has sufficiently proven that accused Napoles committed overt and criminal acts to implement an unlawful scheme to divert the disbursements of the PDAF for her personal gain.” RNT/JGC