JBC looks for dismissed Sandiganbayan Justice Gregory Ong’s replacement

Published November 6, 2014 4:27pm

The Judicial and Bar Council has started looking for the replacement of dismissed Sandiganbayan Justice Gregory Ong, who was removed due to his ties with alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles.

In a two-page announcement, the JBC said it was opening the application and recommendations for the post vacated by Ong, who was dismissed by the Supreme Court last September 23. His dismissal became final last month when the high court denied his motion for reconsideration.

Interested applicants were given until Thursday, November 6, to submit the requirements.

All applications and recommendations, with conforme, must be submitted to the JBC Secretariat, 2/F Centennial Building, Supreme acourt, Padre Faura, Manila.

The application must come with a duly accomplished and notarized personal data sheet. Applications can also be sent via e-mail at jbc@sc.judiciary.gov.ph and jbc87supremecourt@gmail.com.

New applicants and recommendees must submit the required documents in two complete sets, accompanied with a transmittal letter and a compact disc or flash drive containing soft copies of the documents.

Case vs. Ong

The SC earlier this year initiated an administrative case against Ong after reports of his links with Napoles. Leading the investigation was SC Associate Justice Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez, who was recently appointed by President Benigno Aquino III as member of the JBC.

Prior to his dismissal, Ong was the chairman of the Sandiganbayan's Fourth Division, which had acquitted Napoles in a malversation through falsification of public documents case. The case involved the sale of 500 Kevlar helmets to the Philippine Marines in 1998.

After her investigation, Gutierrez said Ong had acted as contact of Napoles in connection with the Kevlar case while it was pending in his division. "Ong, being Napoles' contact in the Sandiganbayan, fixed the Kevlar case resulting in her acquittal," she said.

She added that Ong had received an "undetermined amount of money" from Napoles prior to the promulgation of the decision on the Kevlar case. This made Napoles confident of her acquittal, Gutierrez added.

Ong also allegedly went to Napoles' office where she handed him 11 checks, each amounting to P282,000.00 or a total of P3,102,000.00 "as advanced interest for his P25.5 million BDO check she deposited in her personal account."

Gutierrez said Ong visited Napoles' office on two occasions after participating in the decision in the Kevlar case.

Contrary to Ong's claim, Gutierrez also found out that he attended Napoles' parties and was photographed with Napoles and Senator Jinggoy Estrada, an accused in the pork barrel scam case. — Mark Merueñas/RSJ, GMA News

Tags: gregoryong, judicialandbarcoucil