Borra, et al question clarificatory proceedings

Elections Commissioner Resurreccion Borra on Thursday led other poll officials and private respondents in questioning the fact-finding panel created by the Office of the Ombudsman to conduct clarificatory hearings over the botched P1.2 billion Mega Pacific deal. In Thursday’s hearing, Borra, through counsel Gabriel Villareal, said the panel has no jurisdiction to further conduct clarificatory hearing since the Ombundsman has already resolved the case last week. All respondents in the case, including Elections chair Benjamin Abalos, Senator Aquilino Pimentel and the Kilosbayan Foundation did not attend the hearing, merely sending their respective lawyers to take part in the proceedings. The lawyer of the members of the Bids and Awards Committee, Reynaldo Calavio, also said his clients would not be participating in the clarificatory hearing since the Ombudsman had already recommended the filing of charges against them. Lawyer Federico Alday Jr, counsel for poll chief Banjamin Abalos and Commissioner Florentino Tuason, told the panel led by Overall Acting Deputy Ombudsman Orlando Casimiro and Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio, that it (panel) could not summon impeachable officials since there is no complaint for serious misconduct for his clients. “There should be a ruling first on the basis of jurisdiction before conducting investigation on a sitting Comelec official," Alday said. Villareal, on the other hand, tried to persuade the panel to immediately act on the particular issue on the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman over Borra, the poll official being an impeachable official. Villareal was referring to the manifestation and observations regarding the June 28 resolution of the Ombudsman which he filed before the hearing started. The panel, on the other hand, directed all concerned parties to put in writing their manifestations over the clarificatory proceedings. “We will review first the arguments of the concerned parties on their question of jurisdiction and authority of the panel to conduct further clarificatory hearing and we will know on the next hearing about our resolutions on their manifestations," Villa-ignacio said. In his manifestation, Borra said the Ombudsman could not exercise investigatory power for the purpose of filing a verified complaint for impeachment because it does not have the power under the Constitution to file a verified complaint for impeachment in the first place. Borra added the resolution violated due process, without legal basis and maintained the award of the contract was not disadvantageous to the government. Ombudsman Ma. Merceditas Gutierrez formed the fact-finding panel tasked to conduct further investigation against other individuals who may have been involved in said anomalous transaction. Although the Ombudsman has already recommended the filing of appropriate charges against those involved in the anomalous transaction, it also recommended the further investigation to determine the liability of other government officials and private individuals who could be involved in the anomalous transaction. The panel continued the investigation on the case after the Supreme Court has directed the Ombudsman to finally resolve the case within 45 days or on or before the August 14 deadline. The Ombudsman earlier recommended Borra be impeached for heading Phase ll of the Automation Project awarded to the Mega Pacific eSolutions Inc. The anti-graft body also indicted for graft all five members of the Comelec’s bids and awards committee as well as eight executives of the consortium. - GMANews.TV