Sandiganbayan junks another civil forfeiture case vs Marcoses, cronies

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan has dismissed another wealth forfeiture case against the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, former first lady Imelda Marcos and their alleged cronies, citing insufficiency of evidence from the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG).

“In fine, this Court finds that the plaintiff failed to prove by preponderant evidence that the properties alleged in the complaint are ill-gotten and/or was beneficially owned and controlled by former President Marcos and his family,” the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division said in the dispositive portion of its 156-page decision promulgated on Feb. 21.

It was one of at least five cases filed with and junked by the Sandiganbayan in which the primary accused is the father and namesake of President Marcos.

With the suit’s dismissal, the court lifted the sequestration order it earlier issued against the corporations involved in the case – Lianga Bay Logging Co. and Yulo King Ranch (YKR).

Apart from the Marcos spouses, also named as defendants in the case were businessmen Peter Sabido, Luis Yulo, Roberto Benedicto and Nicolas Dehesa as well as former Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) executives Jose Tengco Jr., Rafael Sison, Cesar Zalamea and Don Ferry.

Also included as defendant corporations were the Philippine Integrated Meat Corp. (PIMECO) and PIMECO Marketing.

Filed by the PCGG on July 28, 1987, the suit docketed as Civil Case No. 0024, sought to recover in favor of the government several properties and financial assets supposedly acquired by the Marcos couple through their alleged dummies and business associates during martial law.

The total amount of assets and properties that the PCGG sought to be awarded to the government was not stated in the suit but among them was a property in Busuanga, Palawan with a total estimated area of 7,000 hectares.

Apart from forfeiture, the PCGG also sought from the defendants payment of P50 billion in damages and P1 billion in legal fees.

The case stemmed from the alleged anomalous grant of millions of dollars in loans to Lianga Bay, PIMECO, YKR and PIMECO Marketing Corp. by the DBP and the Government Service Insurance System from 1973 to 1982.

The PCGG alleged that then-president Marcos used Yulo, Sabido and the other defendants as dummies for the acquisition of the huge loans.

The PCGG said that PIMECO was also given “unwarranted preferential right” to import and monopolize the supply of meat products in the Greater Manila area during the martial law years.

In its decision, however, the Fifth Division said the PCGG, represented in court by the Office of the Solicitor General, failed to present any evidence showing that the corporations involved in the case were being controlled by the Marcos family.

“The totality of evidence against the above-named defendants failed to show the alleged schemes and strategies employed by herein defendants to hide the supposed ill-gotten wealth. Moreover, the evidence is lacking to show that the properties listed under Annex 1 [of the civil suit] are dummy of front corporations beneficially owned and controlled by the former President and his family,” the Fifth Division’s decision read.

It said that the PCGG also failed to establish the association or conspiracy among the Marcos spouses, Yulo, Sabido and other businessmen involved in the case to amass wealth from government coffers.

“Particularly, no competent evidence was submitted to show that the former President had any hand in YKR, Lianga and all other corporations listed in the amended complaint, or in the acquisition of defendant Yulo in his own name of his shares. Furthermore, there was no evidence presented establishing the relation of trust or close association of the defendants to the former President or any members of his family,” the court said.

The Fifth Division noted that the PCGG relied heavily on the affidavit of Rolando Gapud, the former financial adviser of Marcos who claimed he had personal knowledge that Yulo was used as a dummy.

It pointed out that Gapud was never presented in court and neither was there documentary evidence or witness presented to corroborate his affidavit.

The court said that while Gapud’s sworn affidavit was notarized, it is still considered “hearsay evidence” unless “affiant is placed on the witness stand.”

“Hence, the evidence presented was not sufficient to prove the plaintiff’s allegation that the subject properties were ill-gotten,” the court said.

The decision was penned by Associate Justice Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega with the concurrence of Associate Justices Rafael Lagos and Maryann Corpus-Mañalac.

The Sandiganbayan had earlier dismissed several wealth forfeiture cases against the Marcos family and their cronies, citing insufficiency of evidence.

Among those dismissed were Civil Case Nos. 0002, 0007, 0008 and 0034 which sought to recover from the Marcos family ill-gotten wealth amounting to P200 billion, P267.371 million, P1.052 billion and P102 billion, respectively.

Protest at BIR

Meanwhile, in a related development, the Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA) yesterday trooped to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) head office in Manila, urging the agency to issue another demand letter to President Marcos to compel him and his family to pay their estate tax liabilities amounting to P203.8 billion, inclusive of interests and surcharges.

“It has been 24 years ago, in March 1999, when the Supreme Court ruled as final and executory its 1997 decision for Marcos Jr. and his mother Imelda, named as co-administrators of the estate left by dictator Marcos Sr., to pay estate tax dues amounting to P23 billion. Due to surcharges and penalties, this amount has been valued at P203 billion,” the CARMMA, composed mostly of the survivors of human rights abuses during martial law, said in a press statement.

“It is the height of temerity that the Marcoses continue to refuse to pay their tax dues, while Marcos Jr. implores the public to pay their taxes. We are angered by this display of gross insensitivity and arrogance, as the poor majority of Filipinos are in dire need for social services and aid at a time of rising unemployment and inflation rates. Marcos Jr., walk the talk, pay your tax dues!” the group added.