After a night in police custody: Baquerfo posts P40,000 bail

CEBU, Philippines - After being held in police custody overnight because of a warrant of arrest issued by the Sandiganbayan against him on the malversation of public property case he is facing, beleaguered Tudela Mayor Rogelio Baquerfo, Sr. is a again a free man.

Baquerfo was released yesterday morning upon the order of Regional Trial Court executive judge Meinrado Paredes after posting the required P40,000 bail.

   The politician was accompanied by his lawyer Noel Archival and the police, who arrested him Tuesday morning inside his office in Tudela, when he went to the RTC to pay the cash bond.

After his release at about 11 o’clock in the morning, Baquerfo immediately went home to Tudela to appease his worried supporters.

   Archival said his client will continue serving the people of Tudela despite what he called the “baseless” case.

Baquerfo was placed under arrest by his town’s police force shortly before noon on Tuesday because of the order from the anti-graft court.

Justice Ma. Cristina Cortez-Estrada, chairperson of the Sandiganbayan fifth division, issued the warrant of arrest against Baquerfo on the malversation of public property case that his bitter political rival, Demetrio Granada filed five years ago.

The case stemmed from Baquerfo’s alleged embezzling P339,233 worth of cement from the Municipal Government in 2004.

   Granada alleged that Baquerfo converted into his personal use the 350 bags of cement purchased by the government for the town’s clean and green program.

Baquerfo however denied the allegation claiming that the 350 bags of cement he took were just to replacement his personal property that the government has borrowed because the release of the budget for the project was delayed.

Baquerfo’s position is also currently in question because of an earlier court decision that declared him loser in the last elections.

   Granada, his opponent, won in the election protest but has not formally assumed until now because of the absence of the writ of execution pending the appeal of Baquerfo before the Commission on Elections.

Despite the absence of the writ of execution however Granada already took over the office of the mayor and is discharging the function of the mayor. Thus, the town currently has two sitting mayors.

The political squabble has hampered the delivery of the basic services prompting Governor Gwendolyn Garcia to step in. Garcia currently signs the vouchers of all funds disbursements of the town. — Fred P. Languido/NLQ (THE FREEMAN)