THE Sandiganbayan has found former Davao del Norte First District representative Arrel Olaño and Janet Lim Napoles, along with three co-accused, guilty of graft and malversation of public funds in relation to the alleged misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), commonly known as pork barrel.
In a ruling handed down by Associate Justice Edgardo Caldona on Friday, June 30, 2023, the Sandiganbayan also found former Technology Resource Center (TRC) group manager Maria Rosalinda Lacsamana, Countrywide Agri and Rural Economic Development Foundation, Inc. (Cared) president Mylene Encarnacion, and Philippine Social Development Foundation, Inc. (PSDFI) chief Evelyn De Leon guilty of the said offenses.
The anti-graft court said Olaño allocated over P7 million of his pork barrel for 2007 to Cared and PSDFI, which was later identified as among the fake non-government organization being managed by Napoles who was tagged as the pork barrel scam queen.
Under the said scheme, public funds are funneled from the lawmakers’ PDAF to the dubious non-government organizations of Napoles in exchange for kickbacks.
It said the TRC also released P1.890 million to Cared and P5.830 million to PSDFI, the NGOs “however did not actually conduct any regular business activity but were only utilized as conduits for the transfer of public funds that ended up being divided as commissions and/or kickbacks among accused Olaño, Napoles, and TRC officials.”
"There was no actual implementation of government projects. There were some instances of under-delivery of goods, but essentially, these were 'ghost ' or non-existent projects. The liquidation of public funds was therefore made up," it added.
Olaño was also found guilty of direct bribery, as he personally or through an agent, received P3.175 million in kickbacks from Napoles.
Olaño earlier denied the accusations, saying his signatures for the release of the funds were forged and that he never received kickbacks from Napoles.
For each of the three counts of graft and corruption practices, Olaño, Lacsamana, Napoles and Encarnacion were sentenced to up to 10 years in prison and to return to the government P1,890 million, P3.830 million and P2 million.
They also get up to 12 years jail term for each malversation of public funds charges and ordered to pay another P1,890 million, P3.830 million and P2 million to the government.
For direct bribery, Olaño gets another jail term for up to nine years and ordered to pay a fine of P9.525 million.
The four were perpetually disqualified from holding public office.
The other co-accused in the case, including Mario Relampagos, Rosario Nuñez, Marilou Bare, Lalaine Paule, Dennis Cunanan, Francisco Figura, Marivic Jover, Maurine Dimaranan and Consuelo Espiritu, were all acquitted from the said charges.
The court ordered the cash bonds posted by Relampagos and others to be released and for their hold departure orders to be lifted.
The case against Antonio Ortiz, another co-accused, was archived pending his arrest. (SunStar Philippines)