Forfeiture case vs. Imelda, family submitted for decision

The Sandiganbayan is about to reach a decision on the 31-year-old P200-billion forfeiture case against former First Lady and incumbent Ilocos Norte Representative Imelda Marcos and her family.

According to the Fourth Division on Monday, the civil case of Marcos over the alleged ill-gotten wealth of her family has been submitted for decision after both camps submitted their respective summary of arguments.

The Office of the Solicitor General submitted its memorandum to the Sandiganbayan on May 8, while the camp of Marcos filed its own on July 31.

Civil Case No. 0002 also includes Marcos' children Imee, Bongbong, and Irene as defendants. This case is part of the 23 pending cases involving the Marcos family and their cronies at the Sandiganbayan.

Nineteen, on the other hand, have already been dismissed while one case had been archived.

In the case filed in 1987 and amended in 1990, the OSG sought to recover ill-gotten wealth estimated to be around P200 billion and collect billions worth of damages.

The complaint accused the Marcoses of illegally accumulating funds to enrich themselves during the regime of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos.

"Defendants, therefore, have unjustly enriched themselves to the grave and irreparable damage and prejudice of plaintiff. Defendants have an obligation at law to solidarily return to plaintiff such funds and other property," the OSG said.

The OSG thus told the Sandiganbayan then that it aims "to return and reconvey to plaintiff all funds and other property acquired by defendants during their incumbency as public officers, which funds and other property are manifestly out of proportion to their salaries, other lawful income and income from legitimately acquired property which defendants have failed to establish as having been lawfully acquired."

The government also sought actual damages reimbursement of additional expenses worth P250 million that was spent for efforts to seize the Marcos wealth, moral damages worth P50 billion, and exemplary damages amounting to P1 billion.

Other damages include temperate and nominal damages, attorneys fees, litigation expenses, and treble judicial costs that will be determined by the Sandiganbayan.

Last criminal case

The Sandiganbayan found Marcos guilty of seven counts of graft last week over her alleged management of foundations in Switzerland that were supposedly created for the benefit of her family. 

The graft charges were the last criminal case of Marcos at the Sandiganbayan after she was cleared in her other cases in the 1990s.

The conviction of Marcos entails a prison sentence of at least 40 years, plus perpetual disqualification from holding public office.

The Sandiganbayan also ordered Marcos and her legal counsel to explain why they were absent during the promulgation of judgment despite notices served a week before. — RSJ, GMA News