The Department of Justice on Thursday denied suggestions that Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra intervened in a case to favor a company that had hired his son as an associate director.
“This speculation is unfounded,” Justice Undersecretary Mark L. Perete said Thursday, reacting to suggestions that there was a conflict of interest when the National Prosecution Office (NPO) found probable cause to indict casino mogul Kazuo Okada of estafa, following a complaint filed by his former company, Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment, Inc., which has engaged Guevarra’s son as associate director for risk management.
Perete, who is also the spokesman of the DOJ, said the NPS is an office independent from the Office of the Secretary of Justice.
“Its resolution in the Okada case was arrived at by the prosecutor handling the case without intervention or influence of the secretary,” Perete said.
“Secondly, as early as May this year, when a related case involving Mr. Okada reached the Department of Justice, the secretary called a meeting to personally inform the parties that his son was being engaged by Tiger Resorts. The meeting took place at the DOJ on June 27, 2018 with the counsels for both Okada and Tiger in attendance,” the DOJ official said.
In that meeting, Guevarra informed both parties that his son applied for a managerial position in Tiger Resorts in November 2017. Tiger offered his son the associate director position in December 2017.
Guevarra was appointed to the DOJ only on April 5, 2018, after the resignation of then Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II.
“The secretary likewise assured the counsel for both parties that the engagement of his son by Tiger Resorts would have no bearing in the resolution of their cases, and that these cases will be resolved with utmost impartiality,” the DOJ spokesman said.
“This assurance the secretary reiterates today amid the unfounded speculation being raised against him after the issuance by the NPS of its resolution against Mr. Okada,” Perete said.
Perete said Guevarra said his son knew absolutely nothing about the cases involving Tiger Resorts and Okada, nor had father and son discussed the case in any way.
er, considering that the NPS resolution may be appealed to his office, the secretary has requested his son to seriously consider resigning from Tiger Resorts. This, the secretary did to remove any doubt, and dispel speculation against his ability to resolve the case with utmost objectivity and impartiality,” Perete further said.
The Justice secretary added that should his son find no reason to resign from Tiger Resorts, he will completely inhibit himself from resolving these cases, should the same be appealed to his office.
Tiger Resorts described as “malicious lies and fabrication” the allegations that the operator of the posh Okada Manila hired the son of the Justice secretary just months after he assumed his post.
This insinuated that the young Guevarra was taken to influence the Justice secretary in the cases it filed against its former chief executive officer, Okada.
“The despicable black propaganda and underhanded tactic being employed by the camp of Mr. Okada speaks well of how desperate and vicious they have become in their failed bid to regain control of Okada Manila,” the company said.
Tiger Resorts said the reason the DOJ got involved in the case because Okada’s camp prematurely leaked resolutions of former Paranaque City Prosecutor Paudac dismissing the TRLEI complaints.
Okada’s girlfriend Chloe Kim leaked the resolutions on social media even before they were officially released. The leak gave rise to suspecion that Paudac was biased in favor of Okada.
Okada has been indicted for embezzling more than $3.14 million in company funds when he was chief executive officer.
In a resolution issued on Dec. 7, Assistant State Prosecutor Alejandro Daguiso said Okada and his co-conspirator Takahiro Usui, former TRLEI president, should face a full blown court trial on three counts of estafa for the unauthorized disbursement of TRLEI funds.