The Sandiganbayan has reset to March 14 the resumption of trial of former Senator Ramon Bong Revilla Jr.’s for the 16 counts of graft charges leveled against him over his alleged role in the pork barrel scam.
The anti-graft court’s First Division postponed Revilla’s hearing Thursday pending receipt of a formal authority from the Supreme Court to conduct the proceedings at the Sandiganbayan premises.
Revilla, who is running to regain his Senate seat in the May elections, was acquitted of plunder after the prosecution failed to prove he pocketed public funds amounting to P224.5 million.
However, Revilla is still facing 16 counts of graft in connection with the transactions done with Napoles’ non government organizations when he is a sitting senator.
Revilla’s camp was also asked by the anti-graft court division to comment on the prosecution’s motion that he owes the government millions of pesos due to his dismissed plunder case.
The court believes Revilla is still allegedly liable, along with plunder convicts businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles and lawyer Richard Cambe, to return to the government some P124.5 million.
Earlier, the prosecution said the Sandiganbayan ruling purportedly did not specify Revilla if free of any civil liability after he was acquitted from plunder case last December.