Sandigan junks damages claims of gov't, Marcos cronies in SMC

The Sandiganbayan has junked the damages claims of the government and Marcos cronies against each other in the 20-year-old lawsuit against the family of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, San Miguel Corp. chairman and alleged Marcos crony Eduardo “Danding" Cojuangco Jr, former Marcos defense chief and Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, and other defendants. In a resolution on May 11, the Sandiganbayan first division affirmed its May 2004 ruling that the 27-percent bloc of SMC held by the Marcos cronies in Cocofed is owned by the government. “With regard to the claim for damages, this Court believes that there is no need for further proceedings with respect to the claim for damages to this particular subdivided claim, as the plaintiff has expressed its intention not to present further evidence to pursue its claim to damages," the Sandiganbayan said. In a lawsuit filed in 1987, the Presidential Commission on Good Government sought P100 billion in moral damages and P2 billion in exemplary damages. Former President Corazon Aquino created the PCGG immediately after the 1986 EDSA “people power" revolution that ousted Marcos and tasked it with recovering alleged “ill-gotten wealth" amassed by the late dictator and his cronies. The PCGG assessed that the sale of the disputed 27-percent SMC bloc could raise over P50 billion for the government. The Sandiganbayan resolution affirmed the government’s claim over the 27-percent SMC bloc held by six coconut oil mills and 14 holding companies that were set up with the use of money from the Coconut Industry Investment Funds. The court also held that the State is entitled to recover “all dividends declared, paid and issued on the 33,133,266 SMC shares dating back to 1983". In seeking a legal shortcut to end the lawsuit, government lawyers avoided a trial where they could have prsent evidence in back its claim of compensatory damages. On the other hand, the court also junked the defendants’ claim to damages against the government, which they submitted in their respective replies to the 1987 complaint. “The compulsory for damages of defendants is unfounded as there is a finding that the civil case instituted by plaintiff is based on legitimate claims and cause of action. This finding is contrary to defendants’ assertions that the claims (against them) are malicious and unfounded," the Sandiganbayan said. -GMANews.TV