Ombudsman backs plan to tap Bonoan as state witness

The Office of the Ombudsman on Tuesday defended its plan to tap former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan as a state witness, saying his testimony could help build a stronger case against former House Speaker and incumbent Leyte 1st Dist. Rep. Martin Romualdez.

Assistant Ombudsman Mico Clavano confirmed that the Ombudsman is considering making Bonoan a state witness even after it filed plunder and two counts of graft charges worth P573 million on May 28 against the former DPWH secretary over his alleged involvement in the flood control controversy.

“At that time, before we filed the case, he wasn’t cooperative. We wanted to talk to him because he was part of the intricate scheme, which made him a good candidate because he was involved in it,” Clavano said at a press conference.

“Now, with the case already filed, I guess we pushed on a pressure point. Now they [Bonoan’s camp] are willing to cooperate," he added.

Under the law, a person may be admitted as a state witness only if:

• his or her testimony is deemed absolutely necessary to the prosecution’s case;
• there is no other direct evidence available to establish the offense;
• the witness’ testimony is capable of substantial corroboration by other evidence;
• the witness does not appear to be the most guilty among those charged; and
• he or she has no prior conviction for a crime involving moral turpitude.

According to Clavano, Bonoan’s cooperation could help the Ombudsman identify higher-ranking officials who may have played key roles in the alleged scheme, including Romualdez.

"And if that cooperation could lead us to even bigger fish, because in this scheme, we all know that lawmakers were the ones calling the shots. The former House Speaker may have had a big role to play,” he said.

Clavano said Bonoan’s alleged conversations with Romualdez could be crucial to the prosecution.

“When we talk about percentages, statements, and conversations [of Bonoan] with the House leadership and certain congressmen, those are very vital to our investigation because there is no document trail covering these things,” he said.

According to Clavano, Bonoan’s lawyer first approached the Ombudsman three weeks ago to express his intention to become a state witness, and the office took time to evaluate the request.

“When you talk about corruption of this magnitude, there is really no paper trail. What you can get, however, are conversations, statements, and testimonies from people who were in the room," he said.

"That’s why the role of Secretary Manuel Bonoan is very important,” Clavano added.

The Ombudsman spokesperson, however, acknowledged that Bonoan’s detention may have been a major factor in his decision to cooperate.

“We were already willing to file charges against him. That is why we filed a plunder case against him. He was detained. That may have led him to decide to cooperate with us,” he said.

Clavano said Ombudsman prosecutors had approached Bonoan before charges were filed, but he was not receptive to the idea of becoming a state witness at the time.

“There was an attempt from us to make him a state witness, but it was met with resistance back then,” Clavano said.

He also assured the public that the Ombudsman would not allow Bonoan to selectively identify only certain individuals in his testimony.

“That’s the specialty of our field investigators: to exact the whole truth. It’s not just about his allies or his enemies. The investigators should be able to exact the whole truth,” Clavano said.

He added that investigators would be able to detect any attempt by Bonoan to be selective in his testimony.

“Because if there is such a trend of being selective, the investigators will tell him off that something smells funny here," Clavano said.

He cannot just name his enemies and leave out his allies when we know they may also be involved. Our investigators will be able to see through that,” he added.— MCG, GMA News