Initial fate of graft cases vs GMA to be known today

MANILA, Philippines - The initial fate of the graft cases filed against former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will be known today.

The cases will be raffled off using marbles marked with the numbers one to five, representing each of the five Divisions of the Sandiganbayan, which will determine where each will land.

Since Arroyo is facing three separate cases for her alleged role in the botched national broadband network (NBN) deal between the government and China’s ZTE Corp. four years ago, she will face trial in three different courts.

Sandiganbayan executive clerk of court and spokesman Renato Bocar said Presiding Justice Francisco Villaruz is expected to supervise the raffle.

Unlike in regional trail courts (RTC) where the raffling of cases is done by a spinning wheel, case raffles at the anti-graft court are done by drawing of marbles.

Bocar said it is usually the Presiding Justice who retrieves just one marble from the plastic jar, which determines the fate of all the other cases to be raffled.

“If it’s a number 3, for example, the first case on the list of cases being raffled goes to the 3rd Division while the 2nd case on the list is automatically assigned to the 4th and so forth and so on,” he said.

Arroyo is facing three separate complaints for allegedly entering into a contract that is “manifestly and grossly disadvantageous to the government;” for having personal interest for personal gain in the contract “despite knowledge of the irregularities and anomalies that attended to its approval;” and for playing golf and having lunch with ZTE officials in Shenzhen, China while the NBN deal was still pending final approval.

In the second case, former first gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, former elections chief Benjamin Abalos Sr., and former Transportation and Communications (DOTC) Secretary Leandro Mendoza are also listed as respondents.

The first two cases both involve alleged violations of two different provisions of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, while the third is for violating Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Government Officials and Employees.

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales ordered the filing of the criminal charges last week based on complaints filed by Bayan Muna party-list group Rep. Teddy Casiño and two others.

Because the five Divisions of the Sandiganbayan work independently of each other, the chairs of each Division – who have two members sitting with them during trial – enjoy different reputations.

STAR sources, including prosecutors and defense lawyers who had been working with them for quite a time, said each is known to have different styles or ways of handling cases.

The First Division, headed by Associate Justice Efren de la Cruz, is known to be a religious man as he belongs to the Jesus Is Lord (JIL) Christian group.

The Second Division, chaired by Associate Justice Teresita Diaz-Baldos, is known to have more acquittals rather than convictions.

The same sources said the Third Division, headed by Presiding Justice Villaruz, has “slightly the same disposition as the Second Division.”

On the contrary, the Fourth Division, headed by Associate Justice Gregory Ong, is “known for convictions rather than acquittals.”

And the Fifth Division, chaired by Associate Justice Roland Jurado, is known to be a “50:50” court, which means that its number of acquittals and convictions are about the same.

“De la Cruz is reputed to be honest because he is a religious man,” one source from the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), the prosecutorial arm of the Office of the Ombudsman, said.

“Ong seems difficult to talk with because he belongs to a well-to-do family and does not owe the accused a debt of gratitude,” another added.

The Fourth Division is already handling the first graft case filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against Abalos Sr., also for his alleged role in the NBN deal.

The Fifth Division is handling the case of former National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) director general Romulo Neri also in relation to the allegedly anomalous transaction.