Dimaporo arrested in hospital

MANILA, Philippines - Lanao del Norte Second District Rep. Abdullah Dimaporo was served an arrest warrant in a hospital in San Juan yesterday morning for malversation of public funds and graft involving alleged ghost projects valued at P5 million in 2004.

Dimaporo, former provincial agriculturist Isabelo Luna and private individuals Felizardo Dragon, Evangeline Ontiveros, Rosalinda Bisenio and Elmer Sayre are accused of conspiring to cause the release of government money for the purchase of 10,000 bags of Saka Organic fertilizer under the farm inputs and farm implement program of the Department of Agriculture.

The Office of the Ombudsman indicted them last year after learning that no deliveries were made and that the money went to the Lanao Foundation Inc., a non-governmental organization that Dimaporo established in 1994.

Dimaporo is requesting hospital detention since he suffered a mild heart attack a few days before the order for his arrest was issued last week.

The Sandiganbayan said Dimaporo is temporarily being allowed to stay at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center because of his medical condition, but he will be under tight watch by police and National Bureau of Investigation agents.

Magistrates of the anti-graft court’s Fifth Division deferred ruling on Dimaporo’s petition for bail and motion to be placed under hospital detention since ombudsman prosecutors are opposing his requests.

The Sandiganbayan, after a hearing yesterday, gave government lawyers 10 days to file a comment and scheduled another hearing on Aug. 26.

Sandiganbayan magistrates led by Fifth Division chairman Roland Jurado directed the serving of the arrest warrant against Dimaporo at the hospital which allowed a court sheriff to take his fingerprints.

The graft case against the lawmaker is bailable in the amount of P30,000 which his lawyers paid. But the malversation of public funds charge, done through the alleged falsification of inspection, acceptance and other delivery reports, is non-bailable.