SC remands ill-gotten wealth case to Makati court

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has remanded to a Makati court a government complaint that seeks to forfeit the alleged ill-gotten wealth of former military budget officer Lt. Col. George Rabusa, saying a full-blown trial is needed on the case.

In a 23-page decision released on Monday, the SC Second Division granted the government’s petition to reverse the findings of the Court of Appeals that the pieces of evidence presented against Rabusa, his wife and father-in-law were weak.

While the SC said the Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 59 and the CA correctly ruled in favor of Rabusa and his co-accused, the magistrates found merit in the government’s arguments that the bank accounts of Rabusa and his co-accused may be subject to disclosure under statutory exceptions of the Bank Secrecy Act.

With the findings, the SC ordered the Makati RTC to conduct a “full-blown” trial on the merits of the case to examine the pieces of evidence and additional proof that both parties may submit.

The trial will determine whether the accounts in question are exempted from the Bank Secrecy Act and whether the money deposited or invested in the accounts can be considered a legal issue that constitutes a lawsuit.

“Consequently, a full-blown hearing on the merits is required, including the reception of additional evidence, if needed, from both parties. This Court enjoins the lower court to take on this responsibility in order to meaningfully uphold the rule that public office is a public trust, as this Court is barred from reviewing factual matters,” the SC said.

Records showed the government filed in 2004 a forfeiture complaint against the defendants for the forfeiture of their allegedly unlawfully acquired properties.

The government said Rabusa amassed wealth more than what was declared in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) since his stint in the military from 1981.

Rabusa denied the allegations.

The SC said Rabusa was able to justify the discrepancies in his SALN and admitted his wife’s financial capacity and all their recent transactions, which belied any malicious intent to conceal or commit dishonesty to the public.

However, with the case being remanded to the RTC, the government is given a chance to argue further, even if the high court has affirmed the correctness of the RTC and CA’s ruling.