Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation director Linconn Ong and corporate secretary and treasurer Mohit Dargani will be transferred to the Pasay City jail from the Senate detention facility, Senate Blue Ribbon Committee chairperson Sen. Richard Gordon said Sunday.
He warned that if the Pasay City Jail would treat them like "royalty," the Pharmally officials would be moved to another jail.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Sunday signed the commitment order that directs the detention of Ong and Dargani to the Pasay City Jail.
Gordon, who is leading the probe into alleged irregularities that marred the multibillion procurement of COVID-19 supplies made by the Department of Budget and Management-Procurement Service in 2020, noted the Pharmally officials were lying.
During this procurement, Pharmally bagged more than P8 billion in government contracts for PPEs, which were believed to be overpriced.
Ong and Dargani have repeatedly refused to divulge their knowledge on the whereabouts of Pharmally's financial records.
The documents can supposedly help the Blue Ribbon committee shed light on the Senate's investigation of the company.
The immediate transfer of Pharmally's officials was recommended by Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Rene Samonte on Sunday.
Samonte proposed to the Senate leadership to produce the transfer order of Ong and Dargani to the Pasay City Jail.
"I recommended to give the transfer order ASAP. I will see and talk to them when there is already a commitment order to Pasay City jail," he added.
Ong and Dargani refused to provide the Senate Blue Ribbon committee details of the documents that indicated the firm's financial records.
In a video message, Gordon shared a text message from Samonte, which said the Pharmally officials even asked their legal counsel, Roy Kapunan, about the whereabouts of the documents but the lawyer did not know about it.
"We could not leave because he could not tell us where to go. He said he doesn't know where the documents are — office or warehouse or residence. He was told that they could go to all three, but he still did not want to give details. Mohit said Atty. Kapunan knows the details, so I asked that he be contacted," Samonte said.
"Kapunan reportedly almost fell off his chair, saying he had no idea where the documents were. It seems there really are no boxes and boxes of documents, or they do not want to show these documents."
According to Gordon, they have had enough of the Pharmally officials' lies.
"We have (had) enough. You better know that you are going to go to Pasay City Jail," he stressed.
"That's why we senators, all of us in the blue ribbon [committee], we will pass that order and we will make sure that they are detained at Pasay City Jail," he said.
In a separate text message, Samonte said he already saw the commitment order, adding that they would transfer Pharmally officials from Senate premises to Pasay City Jail.
"Yes, they will be subjected to medical check-up and out-processing, and some admin process including coordination and documentation with Pasay City Jail. I expect they will be transferred around lunchtime tomorrow," he said.