THE Sandiganbayan acquitted Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito of charges that he, while mayor of San Juan City, illegally diverted P2.1 million in city funds to purchase high-powered firearms for the local police.
The anti-graft court’s Fifth Division, comprised of Associate Justices Roland Jurado, Rafael Lagos and Maria Theresa Arcega, granted Ejercito’s demurrer to evidence¸ noting the absence of evidence to prove firearms supplier HK Tactical Defense System Inc. enjoyed any special advantages.
“HKTDSI could, therefore, not have been given any advantage by the accused bids and awards committee members because it was not the exclusive distributor of DAEWOO guns and there is no evidence that the accused manipulated the elimination of other DAEWOO suppliers,” the court said.
Ejercito’s acquittal was penned by Associate Justice Roland Jurado but the senator still has a technical malversation suit before the Sixth Division in connection with the deal.
In their complaint, Ombudsman Conchita Morales accused Eercito of unlawfully using the city’s calamity fund to buy the firearms which was allegedly procured in haste without competitive bidding and examining the qualifications of HKTDSI.
But the court said the Ombudsman failed to prove that Ejercito and his co-accused city administrator Ranulfo Dacalos, treasurer Rosalinda Marasigan, attorney Romualdo delos Santos, budget officer Lorenza Ching and engineer Danilo Mercado conspired to grant HKTDSI special advantages.
In fact, the court noted the city council passed a city ordinance allowing Ejercito to buy the firearms for the city’s police department and Ejercito approved the purchase.
The firearms bought using the city’s calamity fund include three units of model K2 cal. 5.56mm sub-machine guns and 17 units of Daewoo model K1 cal. 5.56 mm sub-machine guns.
Last August, the court ordered the suspension of Ejercito from his Senate duties for 90 days pending the resolution of the case.
Meanwhile, Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang said both houses of Congress cannot stop the implementation of preventive suspension orders on legislators.
Tang said the Sandiganbayan is duty-bound to put a public officer charged with graft under preventive suspension, as mandated by section 13 of the Anti-Graft Law, and Congress is compelled to carry out the suspension order.
The Supreme Court had already defined congressional suspension powers “as a penalty as a member of the legislature itself” but “a preventive suspension issued by the Sandiganbayan is not a penalty, it is something that emanates from the fact of this public officer being charged before the court.”
“The Supreme Court has been very consistent on this, na mandatory iyung preventive suspension. I don’t believe that either house of Congress has the discretion not to implement the suspension order,” Tang said.