ShareThis2 former auditors
also charged for
misuse of P2.3 B
By FRANCO G. REGALA
Chief Military and Police Correspondent
MANILA (PhilAmPress) – Three former chiefs of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, 12 other top military officials and two former auditors have been charged with plunder before the Department of Justice over the alleged misuse of P2.3 billion of AFP funds.
The charges were filed by former AFP budget officer Lt. Col. George Rabusa, one of the witnesses of the Senate in its investigation of alleged corruption and anomalies in the AFP.
Charged were retired AFP chiefs under former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Diomedio Villanueva, Roy Cimatu and Efren Abu; former comptrollers Maj. Gen (ret.) Carlos Garcia and Lt. Gen (ret.) Jacinto Ligot; Maj. Emerson Angulo; Colonels Cirilo Donato, Roy Devesa, Gilbert Gapay and Robert Arevalo; Capt. Kenneth Paglinawan; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Hilario Atendido; Brig. Gen. Benito de Leon; Maj. (ret.) Ernesto Paranis; Maj. Gen. (ret.) Epineto Logico, and auditors Generoso del Castillo and Divina Cabrera of the Commission on Audit.
Rabusa said former Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes, who also served as AFP chief, was supposed to be included on the charge sheet, but Reyes’ suicide last Feb. 8 extinguished all his criminal liabilities.
Rabusa accused the respondents of violation Section 2 of Republic 7080, otherwise known as “An Act Defining and Penalizing the Crime of Plunder” which punishes through reclusion perpetua “any officer, who by himself or in connivance with members of his family, relatives, business associates, subordinates or other persons…acquires ill gotten wealth in the aggregate amount of at least P50 million.”
In his 86-page complaint, Rabusa alleged that respondents connived and benefited from the long-time practice of converting billions in funds intended for projects of various units of the AFP, including its intelligence division, into the personal use of the respondents.
Rabusa charged that Reyes pocketed a total of P150 million from AFP funds; Villanueva, P227.4 million; Cimatu, P110 million; Ligot, P360 million; Garcia, P368 million; Paranis, P127.8 million; Del Castillo, P66.26 million; Cabrera, P55.61 million; Devesa and Angulo, P75 million each; Atendido, P135 million; De Leon, P80 million; Abu, P26 million; Gapay, P12 million; and Arevalo, P503.37 million.
Rabusa, who blew the whistle on the AFP practice of giving monetary “pasalubong” and “pabaon” to AFP chiefs of staff, was accompanied by lawyer Noel Malaya and a group of supporters when he filed the complaint.
Rabusa, who served as budget under Garcia, filed the complaint two months after he made his disclosures during the Senate Blue Ribbon’s inquiry on alleged corruption in the military.
He said that his testimonies are corroborated by Perla Valerio, former chief of the J6 civilian fiscal branch’s budget division; and former Lt. Col. Romeo Mateo, former special project officer of the military’s Civil Relation Service.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said she would create a panel of prosecutors that would conduct a preliminary investigation on the complaint lodged by Rabusa.
“We’ve been waiting for this complaint. And since it’s in a complaint form already, we will assign it to a panel directly for preliminary investigation,” de Lima said.
The panel will determine whether there s a probable cause to warrant the filing of plunder charges against them before the anti-graft court, the Sandiganbayan, she said.
The DoJ is expected to summon the respondents to file their answer to the complaint.
The defense and military establishments said they welcomed the filing of plunder charges against the three former AFP chiefs and other military officials, stressing though that the alleged corruption happened more than a decade ago.
Department of National Defense spokesman Eduardo Batac stressed the commitment of DND Secretary Voltaire Gazmin to prosecute offenders in the AFP and other agencies attached to the DND.
“If there is evidence that would merit the filing of cases then we will support the effort for the prosecution of the alleged offenders. As the SND (secretary of national defense) has committed ‘let the axe fall where it may,” said Batac.
Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta Jr., AFP spokesman, stressed that the military organization is all out in ferreting out the truth regarding alleged massive corruption in the AFP during the previous administration.
“More than anyone else, it’s the AFP that would like to find out the truth behind this expose considering that among the stakeholders, it is the AFP that is most affected and involved,” said Mabanta.
“Once again, we would like to remind everyone that facts surrounding the case are those that happened 10 years ago and that various reforms have been instituted since,” he said.
Both Batac and Mabanta expressed hopes that such issue should not be taken against the entire military organization.
“We should not dwell on personalities for as long as the case is meritorious then the department is dutybound to assist in the prosecution of these cases,” said Batac.
“We feel sad there is growing perception that it is still happening right now. By and large, most of these exposes are a thing of the past…there has been so much reforms,” said Mabanta.
At the same time, Mabanta vowed the present AFP leadership will not prevent active members from shedding light to the issue if called by proper authorities.
Mabanta said the military establishment would allow officers to testify, if they are called, because the AFP believes in “openness and transparency.”
Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said it is up to the DOJ to resolve these cases.
Rabusa said the filing of the charges “is the fruit of my labor in the last 3 months…this is the ultimate goal [as to why] I came out in public, to support the program of [President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III] against corruption…”
“Go, go, go tayo. I started this, I will finish it,” said Rabusa in a radio interview before filing the charges.
Former COA auditor Heidi Mendoza, now a COA commissioner, has also disclosed funds misuse in the Armed Forces before a hearing of the House of Representatives on the plea bargain forged by Garcia with the Ombudsman.
Garcia was charged before the Sandiganbayan in 2005 with plunder for allegedly amassing at least P300 million while he was comptroller. The plea bargain allowed him to plead to lesser offenses and walk out of jail on a P60,000 bond.
Rabusa brought about 20 boxes of documents, including receipts of conversion of AFP funds and the amount of budget approved by the former chief during for the period 2000 to 2005, which would serve as documentary evidence for the case.
Garcia is accused of amassing wealth from 2001 to 2004. He assumed the post of comptroller in March 2001 after Ligot was reassigned. Ligot is also facing cases for unexplained wealth.
The AFP chief in 2000-2001 was the late Angelo Reyes who shot himself after Rabusa’s disclosures in February. Villanueva was AFP chief from March 2001 to May 2002, Cimatu from May to September 2002, and Abu from October 2004 to August 2005.
Rabusa also submitted the affidavits of former civilian budget officer Perla Valerio and former military disbursement officer Romeo Mateo as his witnesses.
Paranis was with the Finance Service Unit of the ISAFP during the time of Reyes, Villanueva, and Cimatu.
Del Castillo was chief of the accounting service during the time of Reyes, Villanueva, and Cimatu.
Cabrera was resident auditor of ISAFP for 13 years and she also became the resident auditor of the Navy.
Devesa was executive assistant to Reyes from July 1999 to March 2001.
Angulo was assistant executive assistant and administrative officer at the Office of the Chief of Staff during Reyes’ time.
Atendido was executive assistant to Villanueva from March 2001 to May 2002.
De Leon was assistant budget officer when Cimatu was J6, and also served as executive assistant to Cimatu.
Gapay was budget officer during Abu’s stint as AFP chief.
Arevalo is assistant chief of staff for Logistics of the Army.
Donato held the position of assistant chief, Budget Division, from March 2001 to April 2002 and ISAFP comptroller from April 2002. He is currently Defense and Armed Forces attaché to East Timor.
Paglinawan is assigned as Defense and Armed Forces attaché in Singapore.
Logico is former commanding general of the Logistic Command.