GMA Brandtalk
Tracking
Archives
Sandiganbayan denies Floirendo’s appeal, sets arraignment for May 2
The Sandiganbayan has denied the motion of Davao del Norte Representative Antonio Floirendo Jr. to defer his scheduled arraignment in the graft case filed by House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.
In a five-page resolution dated April 12, the Sixth Division said it denies Floirendo's omnibus motion for leave in connection with his case for violation of of Section 3(h) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
“The court resolves to deny the motion of the accused,” the resolution read.
The court then set Floirendo's arraignment for May 2.
Alvarez's complaint against the lawmaker stemmed from the Consolidated Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) between Tagum Agricultural Development Authority (TADECO), where Floirendo's family is a major stockholder, and its subsidiary Anflo Management and Investment Corporation (ANFLOCOR).
Alvarez said that in 1969, TADECO entered into an agreement with the Bureau of Corrections to lease a portion of land in the Davao Penal Colony to be used for the private company's banana plantation.
The Consolidated JVA was executed in 1979 which extended the period of lease for 25 years and renewed in May 2003 for another 25 years.
At the time the contract was renewed, Floirendo was already a representative of the 2nd District of Davao del Norte. But while he was serving as representative in 2003, Alvarez alleged that Floirendo was also a stockholder of TADECO.
Citing data from the Securities and Exchange Commission, Alvarez said Floirendo was also a board member of ANFLOCOR from 1997 to 2015.
Floirendo told the Sandiganbayan that he has appealed his case with the Ombudsman, saying his motion for reconsideration has yet to be resolved and the preliminary investigation is still unfinished.
The prosecution, however, said the preliminary probe has been completed when his appeal at the Ombudsman was denied on December 28, 2017. It added his appeal was already moot and academic when the Sandiganbayan issued a warrant of arrest against him.
In its resolution, the Sandiganbayan said Floirendo's motion for leave appears to be a second motion seeking a reinvestigation of the case on the ground that he was innocent and was denied of due process.
The Sandiganbayan cited Section 7, Rule II of the Rules of Procedure of the Office of the Ombudsman which states that only one motion for reconsideration and/or reinvestigation can be filed in court.
The anti-graft court said the motion of Floirendo will also be denied even without the Ombudsman guidelines considering that the preliminary investigation had already been finished.
"Even if the instant motion is not prohibited under the Revised Guidelines, it must nonetheless be denied. There is no need to order the Office of the Ombudsman to complete the preliminary investigation because it has been completed," it said. —KBK, GMA News
