House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said on Wednesday that the 60-day suspension of South Cotabato Rep. Pedro Acharon Jr. who is facing graft charges has already been enforced.
“He is now under voluntary suspension. I have informed the Sandiganbayan,” Belmonte said in a text message.
Belmonte’s statement came in response to the Office of the Ombudsman’s motion Wednesday for Acharon’s preventive suspension whose graft case is being tried before the second division of the Sandiganbayan.
Acharon and four other local officials were charged with violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act over the alleged anomalous use of P2.5 million for the June 2006 Tambayayong Festival in California.
The alleged illegal acts were committed when Acharon was still mayor of General Santos City.
Disputing the defense of Acharon, the Sandiganbayan said it found no merit to the lawmaker’s argument that, as congressmen, “he no longer approves or implements disbursement of public funds, as he used to do as former city mayor of General Santos City in which capacity he was charged in this case, or that his constituents would be deprived of representation if he were to be suspended.”
“For as long as the accused occupies a public office, he can be suspended,” the anti-graft court said. In a Jan. 28 resolution, the anti-graft court granted the Office of the Ombudsman prosecutors’ motion for the preventive suspension of Acharon.
The Ombudsman filed charges against Acharon and four other local officials for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for the anomalous utilization of P2.5 million worth of funds spent during the June 2006 Tambayayong Festival in California, USA.
Acharon was arraigned in March 2014.