A group of lawmakers on Thursday filed a resolution seeking an inquiry into the implementation of civil forfeiture and related measures under existing laws with respect to ill-gotten or unexplained wealth of public officials and employees implicated in the flood control projects controversy.
In filing House Resolution 524, Liberal Party (LP) lawmakers in the House of Representatives led by Deputy Minority Leader and Mamamayang Liberal (ML) party-list Rep. Leila de Lima called for inquiry into the status of recovering properties unlawfully acquired by public officials or employees in light of Republic Act (RA) No. 1379, or the Unexplained Wealth Law, and RA 9160, or the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
The proposed inquiry is meant to identify possible gaps in procedure and implementation with a view to recommending “remedial legislative measures to improve the effectiveness of the government’s anti-corruption mechanisms, and ensure accountability in public service.”
Aside from De Lima, House LP lawmakers include Reps. Edgar Erice (2nd District, Caloocan City), Adrian Michael Amatong (3rd District, Zamboanga del Norte), Arlene Bag-ao (Lone District, Dinagat Islands), Jaime Fresnedi (Lone District, Muntinlupa City), Cielo Krisel Lagman (1st District, Albay), and Alfonso Umali Jr. (2nd District, Oriental Mindoro).
“There has been unrelenting demand of our people for accountability for the flood control projects controversy – including calls for the prosecution and arrest of all government officials and employees, along with their private sector co-conspirators and accomplices. Likewise, there has been an incessant public clamor to recover the stolen funds and assets from these unscrupulous individuals,” the resolution read.
“Unfortunately, judging by available media sources, there seems to be a case of underutilization of civil forfeiture mechanisms under both RA 1379 and RA 9160 as tools to recover ill-gotten wealth, and to help curb the climate of impunity in the commission and cover-up of corruption in government,” it added.
To recover ill-gotten or unexplained wealth of public officials and employees, the State employs conviction and non-conviction forfeitures. Conviction forfeiture focuses on punishing the person for a crime, while non-conviction forfeiture focuses on recovering the ill-gotten wealth itself, independent of the criminal case’s outcome.
RA 1379 targets unexplained wealth of public officers, while RA 9160 focuses on monetary instruments, properties, proceeds, or its related web of accounts that are involved in, or related to a wide range of unlawful activities.
“Following RA 9160, its implementing rules and regulations, and the Supreme Court (SC) Rules on Civil Forfeiture under the said law, civil cases for forfeiture of those frozen assets (with request for asset preservation orders) should have been filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), on behalf of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC). If these cases were indeed filed, what their status are, and how many or how much assets are affected are not mentioned in the news reports,” the lawmakers pointed out.
“With respect to the filing of forfeiture proceedings under RA 1379 against properties of those involved in the flood control projects controversy, there were no public or media announcements made by the Office of the Ombudsman,” they added.
In a video posted on his Facebook page, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. disclosed that a total of ₱12 billion worth of assets has been frozen by the AMLC, including former Rep. Zaldy Co’s ₱4 billion air assets, 3,566 bank accounts, 198 insurance policies, 247 motor vehicles, 178 real properties, and 16 e-wallets.
However, according to the LP lawmakers, the value of assets recently recovered by the State from the personalities and accounts believed to be linked to the alleged corruption scheme “would appear a pittance compared to the estimated hundreds of billions of pesos lost to organized corruption amid the biggest corruption scandal in the country’s history.”
“Given the observations indicating a seeming underutilization of the civil forfeiture and related mechanisms in RA 1379 and RA 9160, coupled with the findings of legal experts that amendments may be necessary to improve the laws and their enforcement as asset recovery tools, there is a necessity to conduct a comprehensive legislative inquiry to determine the level of implementation of RA 1379 and RA 9160, particularly with respect to the properties of those allegedly involved in the flood control projects controversy, to ascertain the gaps, if any, in the laws and their application, and to recommend remedial legislative measures, including amendatory bills, if warranted by the inquiry,” HR 524 stated.
“There is likewise an urgent need to examine the coordination, procedures, and enforcement mechanisms of the OSG, Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of the Ombudsman, AMLC, and other relevant agencies in relation to the government’s overall efforts to recover ill-gotten wealth or unlawfully acquired assets of government officials and employees, pursuant to the civil forfeiture laws and other related statutes to address implementation gaps, ensure accountability, and strengthen the legal framework for the recovery of ill-gotten wealth,” it added.
De Lima reiterated that the people’s trust is at stake in the issue.
