Tuesday, January 16, 2007 Anti-graft court orders arrest of ex-banker, businessman
THE Sandiganbayan First Division on Monday ordered the apprehension of former Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) chairman Rafael Sison and former Herdis Group Inc., executive vice president Angel Manahan.
The order was issued when the two failed to testify before the court on an ill-gotten case filed against Herminio Disini, former golfing buddy of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.
Both Sison and Manahan had been issued summons by the court to appear and testify on January 8 but trhey failed to show up without any explanation.
Sison, who was named as co-defendant in the case, was dropped from the suit last month and was granted immunity in his favor. But a precondition was set by the court, and it was his testimony.
The arrest warrant against Sison was served to his addresses in Dasmarinas Village and Twin Towers Condominium, both in Makati City, while the one in Manahan's name was delivered to his last known address at Valle Verde III in Pasig City.
Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) and Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) lawyers called the two to the witness stand to detail how Disini's companies, including Herdis, allegedly got special favors from government financial institutions by way of loans and other financial assistance under the Marcos administration.
Manahan, in his affidavit, claimed to have knowledge of payoffs received by Disini for landing the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant project in favor of Westinghouse Electric Corporation.
Government lawyers have been trying to win this case against Disini to prevent any attempt by Disini's camp to withdraw US$4million deposited in a Swiss bank account under the name of Disini's wife, Paciencia Escolin and children Herminio Angel and Lea Disini.
The Swiss Federal Supreme Court, in a resolution issued last August, threatened to revoke a 20-year-old freeze order on the Disini accounts unless the PCGG is able to secure a forfeiture ruling from the anti-graft court. (DBP/Sunnex)
