MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice is set to place former Presidential Economic Adviser Michael Yang under the Bureau of Immigration’s lookout bulletin, along with eight others tagged in the Senate hearing into pandemic deficiencies already placed under ILBO.
Guevarra on Tuesday said the department will issue put Yang under ILBO following the request of Sen. Richard Gordon, chair of the Blue Ribbon Committee.
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“I have earlier released an ILBO addressed to the BI covering the persons of Messrs. Lloyd Christopher Lao and seven others, as requested by Senate President [Vicente “Tito”] Sotto III,” he added.
Lao served as officer-in-charge of the Department of Budget and Management’s procurement service until he resigned in June 2020. The PS-DBM is tagged in the Senate hearing over the purchase of face masks and shields that are alleged overpriced.
Guevarra said the ILBO was issued “[i]n view of the gravity of the subject matters of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings, as the issue involved is of national interest, and considering the possibility that the afore-mentioned individuals may attempt to place themselves beyond the reach of the legal processes by leaving the country.”
Others put under ILBO are the following:
- Warren Rex Liong
- Twinkle Dargani
- Huang Tzy Yen
- Krizle Grace Mago
- Justine Garado
- Linconn Ong
- Mohit Dargani
Liong, former legal consultant of President Rodrigo Duterte, is currently the Overall Deputy Ombudsman. Duterte appointed him to the post in November 2020.
An ILBO cannot bar a subject from leaving the country, as a court-issued hold departure order can. The lookout order only sets up a mechanism that requires alerting the justice secretary or the prosecutor general if the subject attempts to leave the country.
An HDO can only be issued when charges have reached the court. Prosecutors handling preliminary investigation into complaints filed may also seek the issuance of a precautionary HDO from the court.
The PHDO can be issued in cases where the accused is facing a charge where the minimum penalty prescribed by the law is at least six years and one day.
For those subjects who are already outside the Philippines but are placed under ILBO, Guevarra said: “The BI will make the proper arrangements for monitoring the subject’s travel movements abroad.’
Committee to also be alerted on departure, arrivals of subjects
Gordon, chair of the Blue Ribbon Committee, wrote to Guevarra on Monday asking the justice chief to place Yang on the BI Hold Departure Order, Watch List, or Lookout Bulletin.
Gordon has also asked Guevarra that the Senate committee be informed whenever Yang is about to leave or arrive in the country.
Guevarra confirmed that the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee will also be alerted on Yang’s departure or arrival.
The Senate is currently conducting a legislative inquiry into alleged deficiencies in pandemic spending. The hearings have also touched on Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation, which bagged the largest pandemic contracts with the government worth a total of P8.68 billion, edging out more established firms despite being incorporated only in September 2019 with a paid-up capital of P625,000.
Yang is tagged as financer of Pharmally’s financer, but during a previous Senate hearing, he claimed that he had no further interaction with the company after attending a 2017 meeting with its executives and President Rodrigo Duterte in Davao City.
The Senate has issued warrants of arrest against Yang, who is said to be in Davao.
Yang skipped the hearing on Monday, citing health issues. His lawyer Raymund Fortun told senators that Yang was advised to remain on five-day bed rest due to hypertensive urgency. — with reports from Bella Perez-Rubio