Revilla wants COA documents in PDAF probe voided

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. has asked the Regional Trial Court of Bacoor in his home province of Cavite to void the documents that the Commission on Audit (COA) had used in looking into his alleged misuse of Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) from 2007 to 2009, citing his forged signature.

The documents eventually became part of the evidence in the plunder complaint filed against him before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Revilla’s lawyer, Joel Bodegon, said the civil complaint is not an attempt to harass the whistle-blowers.

Benhur Luy and other whistle-blowers testified in the Senate that they had forged signatures and documents to siphon off Revilla’s PDAF to the private accounts of Janet Lim-Napoles, he added.

Revilla was not dreaming when he asked the court to void the documents presented as evidence before the anti-graft agency, Bodegon said.

Bodegon also disputed the statement of the whistleblowers’ lawyer Levito Baligod that Revilla is dreaming for calling for the return of some P500 million in pork barrel funds to the government.

“Baligod has been the one dreaming that his clients and him can keep the money stolen by them,” he said.

Revilla presented in court the verification of a handwriting expert that his signatures in the PDAF documents were forged.

The handwriting expert examined the documents, including 16 various letters, supposedly between Revilla and heads of the implementing agencies and non-government organizations, as well as the supposed certificate of acceptance from the senator’s office, dated between 2007 and 2009.

Revilla also asked the court to order the defendants to each pay him not less than P100,000 as moral damages; exemplary damages not less than P100,000 and to order the payment of not less than 100,000 as attorney’s fees and not less than P50,000 as litigation expenses.

“By forging plaintiff Revilla’s and attorney Cambe’s signatures to make it appear that plaintiff... is part of the scheme to convert his PDAF to personal use, defendants acted in a wanton, fraudulent, reckless, oppressive or malevolent manner,” read Revilla’s complaint.

Revilla’s lawyers also sought exemplary damages.

Passport

Revilla will formally file his opposition before the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) today on the request of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to cancel his passport.

Bodegon said Revilla received last Thursday the DFA order requiring him to comment on the DOJ request.

“That (DOJ request) is without merit and should be denied,” he said.

Bodegon said the Office of the Ombudsman has not even determined if the plunder complaint against Revilla will be set for preliminary investigation. “...Therefore, there is no basis to declare anyone among those charged by the NBI-DOJ as ‘national security risk’,” he said.