SOS

"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible but in the end, they always fall - think of it, always."

-- Mahatma Gandhi

INQUIRER OPINION - COLUMNS

SOS
Solita Collas-Monsod
Philippine Daily Inquirer

April 29, 2011

Rolando C. Gapud
Chairman of the Board
Del Monte Pacific, Ltd.
17 Bukit Pasoh Road
Singapore 089831

DEAR ROLY,

Please forgive the familiarity. To the best of my knowledge I met you only once when you were one of Ting Roxas’ fair-haired boys, and we were introduced because I worked briefly for him as a consultant. But I do know Nenita, a sorority sister from college, and our daughters are friends - so I guess I can claim some relationship by affinity. And of course I am very familiar with your work and your reputation - both of the highest quality.

I am writing this open letter to you because we need your help very badly again. By "we," I mean the Filipino people. By "help" I mean your testimony, or at least your deposition, in connection with Civil Case 005 - People of the Philippines v. Estate of Ferdinand Marcos.... LucioTan... etc., a total of 40 corporate defendants and 29 individual defendants - that was filed way back in 1987, and got to the trial stage in early 2006. And the "again" part is because you did execute an eight-page sworn statement, accompanied by two annexes which you yourself typed, on Jan. 14, 1987, which clarified the business and financial relationships between Ferdinand Marcos and his cronies during his dictatorship, and which served as the foundation for Civil Case 005.

Your affidavit ended by saying "...I am prepared to elaborate, if necessary, and execute such document or documents as may be needed to explain such part or parts of this Sworn Statement which may require clarification." You executed another two affidavits in Hong Kong, on the matter, giving more details, and reiterating your willingness to testify.

Why did it take so long for the Filipino people to come to you for help again? Not our fault, I assure you. As you know, the Presidential Commission on Good Government wanted to depose you sometime in 1993, (with oral examination) to be taken in Hong Kong (apparently because there were fears for your life which militated against your coming to the Philippines). But there were objections from some of the defendants, in particular Lucio Tan (please note that none of the Marcoses objected, neither did Cesar Zalamea nor Don Ferry nor the estate/heirs of Gregorio Licaros), and the Sandiganbayan (SB) ruled in their favor.

Why the ruling against taking your deposition? Because, the SB said, the defendants had not yet served their answers. Moreover, you were neither old, nor sick, nor infirm, so there was no urgency, said the SB justices. Of course, the PCGG appealed to the Supreme Court - and it took the Supreme Court eight years (2001) to decide the issue - siding with the SB. One wonders why it took eight years for them to decide. See what the Filipino people have to put up with?

And then, unfortunately, when the last answer from the last defendant was received in 2005, another barrier was raised against getting your deposition as Marcos’ financial consigliere, privy to all the financial machinations of the dictator. This time, even more unfortunately, the barriers did not come from the opposite camp, but from our side - namely the PCGG and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG). The powers that be in these agencies just sat on the urgent requests of the government lawyers involved (Catalino Generillo for the PCGG, Mauricia Dinopol for the OSG) to ensure that you would be called to testify, or at least be deposed. Can you imagine, Roly? In 1993, they said that your testimony is "indispensable to establish the intricate unlawful business activities of the Marcoses and their principal business associates or cronies, including Mr. Tan," and yet when there were no more legal barriers to securing your testimony, they then delayed doing it for another five years.

You must know, of course, that former solicitor general and justice secretary Agnes Devanadera even went so far as to object to allowing Mariano Tanenglian, Lucio Tan’s brother and former chief consigliere, to testify against Tan, stating that this would not benefit the government’s case (the PCGG agreed with her!); and that the PCGG, at the behest of Devanadera, who in turn "behested" at the behest of Lucio Tan’s lawyer, fired its own lawyer (Generillo) who was making waves for the prosecution and striking fear in the hearts of the defense. And after having done so, the PCGG publicly announced that it had a weak case against Lucio Tan. The latter, by the way, was photographed sitting beside Devanadera at a testimonial for her in the Department of Justice. How’s that for a cozy relationship?

Now you surely see what the Filipino people have to put up with. And realize how much we need your help.

And the best time to help is now - because now, both the PCGG and the OSG are on the same page as the Filipino people. These two agencies have been showing a lot of spine and teeth, thank heavens. They’re doing things that were unimaginable under the previous administration - like asking for the SB justices to inhibit themselves (showing a pattern of bias), like pursuing once again the possibility of getting Tanenglian as a state witness, and actively trying to secure your testimony. Actually, it seems that the Aquino administration itself is on a mini-roll here. Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez has just resigned, and we’ve finally got a credible appointee to the Commission on Elections.

And with you on board, the Filipino people will finally have more than a fighting chance to get back what has been stolen from them. We’re talking about at least P220 billion here.

Please? For Inang Bayan. Sincerely, Winnie.

Get Real, Rays of Light

Get Real
Rays of light
By Solita Collas-Monsod
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:21:00 03/25/2011
Filed Under: Judiciary (system of justice)

THAT FULL-PAGE ad taken out in this newspaper entitled “SO THAT THE PCGG AND OSG (and others) MAY HAVE THE FACTS RIGHT ON WHY THE PRESENTATION OF THEIR TESTIMONIAL EVIDENCE ON THE LUCIO TAN ILL-GOTTEN WEALTH CASE WAS TERMINATED BY THE SANDIGANBAYAN ON APRIL 23,2009” by Estelito P. Mendoza and Associates (lawyers for Lucio Tan) is an indication, from where I sit, that the actions of the new and revitalized Presidential Commission on Good Government may be starting to hit a nerve.

The reader will recall that I wrote last week that the PCGG/OSG had filed a motion with the Sandiganbayan for the justices hearing Civil Case 0005 to inhibit themselves because of their “manifest partiality and bias in favor of the powerful interests impleaded in this case (which) glaring inequity substantially eroded the Republic’s faith that this case would be resolved in accordance with law, justice and equity.”

The powerful interests adverted to is, of course, Lucio Tan who has so far managed to win all the cases filed against him, whether it be government agencies (i.e., the BIR) or his labor unions (the flight attendants’ union did win its case against him in the Supreme Court, won in Tan’s first motion for reconsideration, and then lost the second). For that matter, Tan has somehow managed to get his way with Congress as well. And let’s face it, Presidents, too, although so far P-Noy seems to have been able to resist his blandishments (it is my understanding that P-Noy himself refused any campaign contributions from Tan, but it has also been alleged that the latter managed to course it through some members of the Samar group).

It should not escape anyone’s notice that while the title of the ad refers to the April 23, 2009 open-court order of the Sandiganbayan terminating the prosecution’s presentation of testimonial evidence, what it reproduced is the July 20, 2009 Sandiganbayan resolution denying the motion for reconsideration filed by the PCGG/OSG. That is because the April 23 order was an oral one, and it is clear as a bell that it was done in a rush, with only the weakest attempts at justification, because the anti-graft court, presumably at the urging of Mendoza, was trying to stave off the possibility of Mariano Tanenglian (Lucio Tan’s brother) turning state witness. Whether or not a written order followed the oral one, I do not know. But even if there was one, the fact that Mendoza did not use that but preferred to reproduce a resolution handed down three months later is in itself very telling: they needed additional time to marshal the arguments necessary to justify the order of April 23.

Even then, I still am not buying their position. The partiality was manifest, and the explanatory note of Mendoza and Associates gives it away. Notice, dear reader, what Mendoza says: “The termination was not only justified but belated. The case has been pending since July 17, 1987, or now for nearly TWENTY-FOUR YEARS” (emphasis theirs).

And yet, when the Sandiganbayan talks about the “antecedent facts,” it starts with 2005, rather than 1987. And the reason becomes clear, when one sees the timeline (as provided to me generously by Catalino Generillo, who was hired by Haydee Yorac and whose judgment I will take over that of 10 Agnes Devanaderas).

So why did the Sandiganbayan start with 2005? Well because, dear reader, the delay between 1987 and 2005 was due to the collective efforts of the defendants, including Lucio Tan—dilatory tactics, including motions to dismiss, motions for bill of particulars, motions to suspend proceedings (even before the start of the formal trial). For example, it took Lucio Tan almost three years (March 1990) to file his answer to the initial complaint of the PCGG, and would you believe another nine years to answer the PCGG’s amended complaint? On the other hand, of the 17 postponements requested by the government, as cited by the court, only three are fully attributable to the government per the PCGG tally, while the rest were due to valid reasons, i.e., circumstances beyond its control.

Indeed, if the Sandiganbayan had taken cognizance of those defendant-caused delays, rather than just the prosecution-caused delays, there would clearly be no basis whatsoever to chafe at the delays they attribute to the prosecution, much less to terminate arbitrarily (justification three months later, as noted above) its presentation of evidence, in effect denying the latter the opportunity to fully present its case. How’s that for loading the cards against the good guys?

But lo and behold, it seems that some rays of light are appearing in what was heretofore a very dark horizon. The same day that the full-page Mendoza ad appeared in the Inquirer two days ago, the Sandiganbayan granted, in open court, the government’s motion to adduce additional evidence, and gave it an eight-month window to do so, the clock starting immediately.

Did the court change its mind because of the March 15 PCGG/OSG motion for the justices to inhibit themselves? One cannot tell. But in researching for this column, I came upon a report regarding a 2010 ruling by the Supreme Court (with Martin Villarama as ponente) that the Sandiganbayan (Second Division) committed grave abuse of discretion when it denied a PCGG plea to reopen a case for presentation of additional evidence.

The Villarama decision stated that the Sandiganbayan’s refusal would result in “miscarriage of justice”; and that, aside from this, the Sandiganbayan flouted EO 14, Series of 1986 issued by President Cory Aquino (when her word was law) that technical rules of procedure and evidence shall not be strictly applied to cases involving ill-gotten wealth.

Cheers.

Statement in Response to the Full-Page Advertisements of Atty. Estelito Mendoza
Posted on April 8, 2011 by The Commission

[Nota bene. The following statement, in response to the full-page advertisements of Atty. Estelito Mendoza, was circulated to certain members of the press. Unfortunately, except for Prof. Solita Collas-Monsod's article (25 March 2011) entitled, Rays of Light, to our knowledge, the following statement was neither covered nor mentioned anywhere else.]

The law firm of Atty. Estelito Mendoza, counsel for Mr. Lucio Tan, took out paid full-page advertisements in The Philippine Star (on 23 March 2011) and Philippine Daily Inquirer (on 24 March 2011), to purportedly explain why the presentation of the Republic’s evidence in the Lucio Tan ill-gotten wealth case was terminated by the Sandiganbayan on April 23, 2009.

The said advertisements were misleading and the facts presented were maliciously slanted to favor Mr. Tan and his co-defendants. It unfairly casts aspersions on both the PCGG and the OSG when both institutions only seek to exhaust all remedies allowed under the Rules of Court to present the government’s case. In taking out the paid advertisements, Atty. Mendoza violated Canon 8 of the Code of Professional Responsibility which requires a lawyer to conduct himself with courtesy, fairness and candor toward his professional colleagues.

The Delay was Not The Fault of the Republic

The July 20, 2009 Sandiganbayan Order which was printed as part of the paid advertisement lists down 17 instances when the government allegedly sought postponement of hearings. However, a closer reading of the 17 cited instances would show that only 3 are fully attributable to the government (15 February 2007, 11 June 2008 and 15 April 2009).

The rest of the postponements mentioned were due to valid reasons such as the sickness (duly supported by medical certificates) of the government’s counsel or witness, or due to the court process server’s failure to serve subpoena on government-proposed witnesses. Clearly, it is unfair to blame the government for the delay mostly caused by circumstances beyond its control.

Mr. Lucio Tan and his Co-Defendants Caused Delays

The complaint for recovery of ill-gotten wealth against Mr. Tan and his co-conspirators was filed on 17 July 1987. The government began its initial presentation of evidence only on May 24, 2006, more than nineteen (19) years later. The delay of nineteen (19) years from the time of the filing of the complaint to the time that the government started presenting its first witness was caused by collective efforts of Mr. Tan and other defendants.The records show that defendants filed motions to dismiss, motions for bill of particulars and on at least two occasions, Atty. Mendoza filed motions to suspend proceedings even before the start of the formal trial.

Timing and Motivation Behind the Advertisements

The paid full-page advertisements clearly violate the sub judice rule which prohibits parties and counsel from publicly discussing matters that are still being considered by the court. Moreover, it came out just as the government had filed separate motions for inhibition of the Justices of the 5th division of the Sandiganbayan for their manifest bias in favor of the Mr. Tan, and for the government to be allowed to present Mr. Tan’s brother, Mr. Mariano Tanenglian as a witness for the government.

In as much as a trial is intended to be a search for the truth, the government wants to present Mr. Tanenglian as a witness and for the court to hear what he has to say. For one reason or another, the previous PCGG and Solicitor General did not want him to testify for the government. We disagree. Mr. Tanenglian has offered his willingness to testify for the Republic, we believe that the court and the Filipino people should hear what he has to say.

Final statement

It is beyond doubt that the full-page advertisements were precisely timed to influence the court as it evaluates the motion for inhibition and the motion to adduce new evidence which includes the testimony of Mr. Tanenglian. It is clearly part of Mr. Tan’s well-funded and orchestrated effort to prevent Mr. Tanenglian from testifying, clearly driven by fear of the truth that he and his associates have successfully hidden from the public eye for the past 24 years. While we cannot guarantee what exactly Mr. Tanenglian will say, the PCGG will fight for his right to testify and narrate the circumstances as to how Mr. Tan has accumulated his present wealth generated as a result of an unholy and corrupt partnership with former President Marcos to the great prejudice of the Filipino people.