Sotto signs commitment order vs. Pharmally execs for transfer to Pasay jail

Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Sunday signed the commitment order that directs the detention of Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation director Linconn Ong and corporate secretary and treasurer Mohit Dargani at the Pasay City Jail.

Sotto had signed the order upon the request of the Senate blue ribbon committee addressed to the Superintendent Ramil Vestra, warden at Pasay City Jail, according to a tweet by Super Radyo dzBB reporter Nimfa Ravelo.

"Yes. Blue ribbon requested. I signed already," Sotto told reporters.

This comes after Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Rene Samonte recommended such immediate transfer of the Pharmally officials, who were hesitant to disclose the whereabouts  of the documents on the company's financial statements. 

In a separate text message, Samonte said he already saw the commitment order, adding that they will transfer Pharmally officials from Senate premises to Pasay City Jail.

"Yes, they will be subjected to medical check up and out-processing, and some admin process including coordination and documentation with Pasay City Jail. I expect they will be transferred around lunchtime tomorrow," he said.

Earlier, Samonte informed the Office of Senator Richard Gordon, who heads the Senate blue ribbon committee, about the Pharmally officials' continued refusal to disclose the location of the documents being demanded from them.

“Hindi nakaalis kasi ayaw magbigay ng info kung saan pupunta. Hindi daw niya alam kung nasaan — office or warehouse or residence. He was told that they can go to all three, pero ayaw pa din. Ang sabi ni Mohit ay alam daw ni Atty Kapunan, kaya pinatawagan ko," Samonte said.

(We could not leave because they could not tell us where to go. He said he doesn't know [where the documents are] — office or warehouse or residence. He was told that they can go to all three, but he still did not want [to disclose]. Mohit said Atty. Kapunan knows the details so we had him contacted.)

"Muntik na daw mahulog ang lawyer sa upuan, kasi wala daw kaalam-alam si Atty Kapunan kung ano man ang mga documents na 'yun. It seems wala talagang boxes and boxes of documents, or ayaw ilabas kung meron man," he added.

(Kapunan reportedly almost fell off his chair, because he said he has no idea at all what those documents are. It seems there really are no boxes and boxes of documents, or  they do not want to show them.)

Gordon, for his part, warned the Pharmally officials that they will be moved to another jail if the Pasay City Jail will treat them "royally."

The Senate blue ribbon committee has been looking into the procurement of COVID-19 supplies made by the Department of Budget and Management-Procurement Service (PS-DBM) last year. This includes the P8 billion contract that Pharmally bagged for personal protective equipment.

The company also only had a paid-up of P625,000 when they got the government contracts. —KG, GMA News