Ex-Nabcor execs get up to 40 years over PDAF

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan has sentenced two former officials of the defunct state firm National Agribusiness Corp. (NABCOR) to up to 40 years in prison in connection with the misuse of P4.85 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), or pork barrel, of the late Eastern Samar lone district representative Teodulo Coquilla in 2008.

In its 86-page decision promulgated on Sept. 2, the court’s Third Division found former NABCOR human resources and administrative manager Encarnita Cristina Munsod and former general services unit head Romulo Relevo guilty of two counts each of violation of Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and another two counts each of malversation of public funds under Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code.

Also found guilty of the same offenses was private respondent Margie Luz of Gabaymasa Development Foundation Inc.

They were sentenced to six up to 10 years of imprisonment for each count of the graft offense with the accessory penalties of perpetual disqualification from holding public office and forfeiture of all retirement benefits.

As for one of the two malversation cases, they were sentenced to 10 up to 14 years of imprisonment and were ordered to each pay a fine of P4.365 million, with the interest of six percent per annum until fully paid.

The court said this was on top of another P4.365 million that Munsod, Relevo and Luz must jointly reimburse to the Bureau of Treasury, which also carries a legal interest of six percent per annum until fully paid.

As for the other malversation case, Munsod, Relevo and Luz were sentenced to two up to six years of imprisonment and were ordered to each pay a fine of P485,000 with the interest rate of six percent per annum until fully paid.

They were also held jointly liable to reimburse the government of P485,000 with the interest rate of six percent per annum until fully paid.

The Third Division, meanwhile, ordered the cases against former NABCOR president Alan Javellana, former NABCOR chief accountant Ma. Julie Villaralvo-Johnson and private respondent Ma. Cristina Vizcarra of Gabaymasa to be temporarily archived as they remain at large. The court, however, said this is without prejudice to the cases’ revival upon their arrest.

The court had earlier dismissed the cases against Coquilla on account of his death in 2018.

Filed by the Office of the Ombudsman in 2017, the cases stemmed from the allocation of P4.85 million of Coquilla’s PDAF during his term as congressman to Gabaymasa (now Pagwadan Foundation Inc.) for supposed implementation of livelihood projects in his district.

The ombudsman, however, said that its field investigation showed that the projects were non-existent and were never implemented.

The ombudsman said Gabaymasa was also unaccredited and unqualified to carry out the projects.

The ombudsman said the NABCOR officials facilitated the release of Coquilla’s PDAF to Gabaymasa through two Landbank checks without examining the foundation’s qualifications and despite incomplete supporting documents.

Gabaymasa, in turn, submitted falsified acceptance and delivery reports, disbursement reports, project proposals and other liquidation documents “to conceal the fictitious nature of the transaction,” the ombudsman said.

In convicting Munsod and Relevo, the Third Division said that they turned a “blind eye to the irregularities surrounding the disbursement of the funds.”

As for Luz, the court noted that she was the signatory to the Memorandum of Agreement dated Jan. 16, 2008 entered into by NABCOR and Gabaymasa. The court said that “without such MOA, the PDAF-drawn fund would not have been illegally transferred from NABCOR to Gabaymasa.”

“In sum, a conspiracy among accused Coquilla, Relevo, Munsod and Luz has been proved beyond reasonable doubt by the prosecution,” the court’s decision read.