The Sandiganbayan has ordered the arrest of Ozamis Mayor Reynaldo Parojinog Sr. and his daughter, Vice Mayor Nova Princess Parojinog-Echavez, over an alleged anomalous contract for the renovation of the provincial gymnasium in 2010.
Associate Justice Maria Theresa Mendoza Arcega of the Fifth Division said there was a probable cause against the two accused as she junked their motion to dismiss the graft raps against them.
The Sandiganbayan said Parojinog and his daughter were conflicted when they patronized their family-owned company, the Parojinog and Sons Contruction Co., in the renovation of the provincial gymnasium.
“The Court is convinced that the prosecution presented ample evidence to support a finding of probable cause hence the accused must be arrested and brought to trial,” the anti-graft court’s seven page resolution read.
The Parojinog and Sons Construction Co., which was listed in the mayor’s Statement of Assets Liabilities and Net Worth, won the government contract to renovate the city’s Ramiro Gymnasium.
Parojinog-Echavez was the company’s managing partner.
Based on the Ombudsman’s investigation, Parojinog Sr., in an alleged conspiracy with the other respondents, approved the awarding of the contract to his family company.
“It is clear that Parojinog and Sons is a family enterprise in which respondent Parojinog has financial and material interest with access to information that will likely influence the result of the bidding process, and should have been disqualified,” the Ombudsman’s resolution read.
