Sandiganbayan dismisses case vs ex-Rizal mayor 

The Seventh Division of the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan has dismissed the criminal case against former Rodriguez, Rizal mayor Pedro Cuerpo due to the supposed “inordinate delay” of the Office of the Ombudsman in filing the charges.

In a 13-page resolution promulgated on August 15, a copy of which was released to the media only on Tuesday, the Seventh Division sided with Cuerpo’s argument that the case should be dismissed on the ground that his constitutional rights to speedy disposition of the case has been violated by the Ombudsman.

“There was no justifiable reason for the delay. The Ombudsman failed to explain why the delay could not be considered vexatious, capricious and oppressive,” the Seventh Division said in its ruling.

Cuerpo is facing before the court a case of usurpation of official functions or violation of Article 177 of the Revised Penal Code.

Based on the information of the case filed in January this year, Cuerpo, in 2006, issued temporary permit to operate (TPO) and/or franchise to some private vehicles for them to function as private utility vehicles (PUVs) within the municipality of Rodriguez.

The Ombudsman said Cuerpo issued the permits in exchange for fees and despite the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board’s (LTFRB) sole authority to issue permit to operate to vehicles.

In its ruling, the Seventh Division noted that it was on January 16, 2007 when the complaint was filed by a transport group before the Office of the Ombudsman and yet it was only on September 16, 2014 when Ombudsman Conchita Caprio-Morales approved a resolution ordering the filing of the case.

Further, the court noted that despite the issuance of the resolution, it took the Ombudsman more than a year to finally file the case before the Sandiganbayan on January 8, 2016.

The complaint has been pending with the anti-graft body for nine years.

“As to why it took the Ombudsman almost six years to approve the recommendation for the filing of the [case] Information and over a year to actually file the Information with this Court, no sufficient explanation was proffered,” the resolution read.

The resolution was penned by Associate Justice Zaldy Trespeses and was concurred in by Associate Justices Alexander Gesmundo and Maria Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta.

The court said the delay in the Ombudsman’s investigation was unjustifiable considering that there was only a sole respondent in the complaint and that there were “no complex issues to resolve, voluminous records to read or ocular inspections to be conducted”.

“Moreover, the records before us do not show any further motions filed or collateral incidents initiated by accused Cuerpo, which would have complicated or prolonged the proceedings,” the court added.

The Seventh Division dismissed the prosecution’s argument that Cuerpo waived his right to speedy disposition of the complaint because he never moved for its early resolution.

“On the other hand, being the respondent in the preliminary investigation proceedings, it was not the accused’s duty to follow up on the prosecution of his case,” the resolution read.

“A defendant has no duty to bring himself to trial; the State has that duty as well as the duty of insuring that the trial is consistent with due process,” it added.

Lastly, the court dismissed the prosecution’s claim that the delay did not cause any injury to Cuerpo.

“It appears from the records that accused is now 63 years old. The lengthy passage of time diminishes his ability to adequately prepare his case…In addition, even if he is not imprisoned prior to trial, accused is burdened with restraints on his liberty, financial strain of litigation and constant anxiety,” the court said.

“Wherefore, in view of the foregoing, the accused’s motion to quash is granted and SB-16-CRM-0041 (crime number) is hereby ordered dismissed,” the court said.

The court also ordered the lifting of the hold departure order (HDO) it earlier issued against Cuerpo as well as the return of the P10,000 bail bond he earlier posted for his provisional liberty. — VVP, GMA News