It’s Josons’ turn to be sued for graft in Nueva Ecija

Former Nueva Ecija Gov. Tomas Joson III and two past provincial treasurers have been charged with corruption before the Office of the Ombudsman.

The criminal charges were filed by Raymund Sarmiento, head of the Nueva Ecija provincial government’s Public Affairs and Monitoring Office, against Joson and Lilia de Jesus and Adoracion Del Rosario–Sumangil, who had served as acting provincial treasurers.

In his sworn statement, Sarmiento said Joson, De Jesus and Del Rosario–Sumangil failed to remit loan payments amounting to P1.457 million to the Quedan and Rural Credit Guarantee Corp., a government-owned and controlled company.

The amount came from salary deductions from provincial government employees who took out loans under a livelihood assistance program.

Sarmiento also said the provincial government failed to pay a penalty of 2 percent a month for delayed remittances.

He attached copies of disbursement vouchers for the deductions that he said were not remitted.

Sarmeinto said the loan payments were considered public funds held in trust, and could only be spent for the specific purpose for which that trust was created.

Since the funds were not remitted, it was presumed those were used for some other purpose, he said, accusing Joson, De Jesus and Del Rosario-Sumangil were liable for the misuse of public funds.

Sarmiento said the actions of the three had caused undue injury to the government.

The complaint seeks the suspension of De Jesus and Del Rosario-Sumangil, who are assistant provincial treasurer and chief of the Land Tax Division, respectively, until the case is settled.

Joson was governor of Nueva Ecija for three terms, from 1998 to 2007, De Jesus was acting provincial treasurer from July 1 to Sept. 30, 2005, while Del Rosario-Sumangil held the post, also in an acting capacity, from Nov. 2, 2006 to the end of Joson’s tenure in office last year.

Joson opens new front in Ecija politics

Nueva Ecija politics is heating up with the vice governor taking the governor and his wife to court on graft charges.

In documents filed with the Office of the Ombudsman, Vice Gov. Edward Thomas Joson accused Gov. Aurelio Umali, his wife Rep. Czarina Umali, provincial treasurer Edilberto Pancho, consultant Ferdinand Abesamis, and administrator Alejandro Abesamis of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

In particular, Joson said, it was illegal for Umali to hire Edgardo Rillon as the provincial information officer because the Civil Service Commission had rejected his appointment.

Joson also complained about an alleged overpricing of 93 “multi-cabs” that were distributed to various villages in the province.

The provincial government bought these for P176,200 each, even though the supplier, HCK Motors, had quoted them at P135,000 each with free registration.

As part of his complaint, Joson said the appointment of Abesamis as a consultant violated the Local Government Code because he had been dismissed from government service during the Estrada administration.

Joson added that Abesamis “rules” the capitol, despite his status as a consultant.

Umali’s wife, the representative of the 3rd District, was included in the suit for donating P5 million from her countrywide development fund to the multi-cab project.

Standard Today tried to reach the Umalis for comment, but a call made to the governor’s cell phone was answered by someone who introduced himself as the executive’s chief of staff.

The person said Umali was in a meeting and that they would meet to discuss the matter later yesterday (April 22). – Joel M. Sy Egco (Manila Standard Today April 23, 2008)

Gov’t behind ‘revived’ murder raps, say party-list solons

Militant lawmakers yesterday (April 18) branded as another attempt of the Arroyo government to pin them down on the multiple murder charges filed against them by the military in separate courts in Nueva Ecija last year.

The latest charges against Satur Ocampo and Teodoro Casiño, both of Bayan Muna, Liza Maza of Gabriela and former Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano stemmed from accusations that they ordered the killings of three Nueva Ecija farmers.

Ocampo denied the charges against him, saying these are merely trumped-up accusations by the Arroyo administration.

He noted that the charges are just a retaliation of the government after he attended the 10-day meeting in Canada which tackled the issue of spate of extra-judicial killings in the country.

The Bayan Muna representative also accused the government of conducting surveillance on him.

Ocampo, in a radio interview, said two motorcycle riding men were stalking outside his house in Quezon City.

He added the men apparently had two other companions in aboard another vehicle and the four unidentified persons were communicating through radio.

According to him, if the men were from the police, they had no reason to closely monitor his actions because authorities have yet to release any warrant of arrest against him, in connection with the murder case filed against him at a court in Nueva Ecija province.

Casino, for his part, said the Nueva Ecija multiple murder case against them was the same charge used as basis for last year’s disqualification case filed against their party-list groups which was eventually dismissed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

He also accused the military and the police of pressuring the court to issue an arrest warrant against them.

“The PNP and the AFP are now pressuring the court to abandon due process and issue an arrest warrant tomorrow (April 21) to again forcibly remove us from serving our constituents,” Casiño, in a text message, stressed.

The families of victims Danilo Felipe, Carlito Bayudang and Jimmy Peralta filed the criminal charges after witnesses surfaced and named the party-list congressmen in the killings.

Apart from the lawmakers, 15 other members of the Communist Party of the Philippines. New People’s Army in Central Luzon were also named in the charge sheet.

Malacañang, however, denied having a hand in the alleged surveillance operation against Ocampo.

Chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol maintained that there is no reason to do that because there is no pressing issue against Ocampo right now.

The Palace official said Ocampo is always free to speak up against the government in the matter has no logic.

“Why would we threaten him? He is even free to speak anything and besides, he is not doing anything wrong… There is no issue about him so what is the reason of any surveillance?” he asked.

Apostol said the government is willing to give security to Ocampo should he ask for it.

He added they also want the matter looked into so they would know if it is true and who are involved.

In 2007, Ocampo was arrested over his alleged participation in the killings of former colleagues in Hilongos, Leyte, in connection with the purging of government spies who infiltrated the ranks of the Communist Party of the Philippines in early and mid 80s. the Supreme Court dismissed the rebellion case against the Batasan 6, and allowed Ocampo to post bail on the Hilongos case.

Militant group Pamalakaya, meanwhile, accused President Arroyo, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzalez, and outgoing Armed Forces Chief of Staff Hermogenes Esperon Jr. of masterminding the looming arrest of Ocampo and the three other activist lawmakers.

“The National Security gang in Malacañang is behind this brazen attempt to imprison the real servants of the people. It wants to stop them from exposing and opposing the President’s long-running crimes against the people,” Pamalakaya national chairman Fernando Hicap, in a statement, said.

“Malacañang just waited for the Universal Periodic Review finished its assessment of the President Arroyo’s human rights performance over the last six years before deciding to push through with the filing of criminal charges against our party-list lawmakers,” he added.

Last week, Ocampo was on a spwaking tour in Canada to tackle the human rights performance of Mrs. Arroyo, while Casiño was part of the six member delegation dispatched by the Philippine UPR Watch to contest the human rights report of the 44-men delegation team sent by Malacañang last week to report the human rights records of the Philippine government over the last seven years before the United Nation Human Rights Council currently reviewing the human rights status in the country.

Batasan 4 faces kidnap, murder raps

CABANATUAN CITY –Four party-list representatives were charged last Friday (April 18) in court with kidnapping with murder and two counts of murder for the alleged liquidation of three deep-penetration agents by the leftist movement in 2001, 2003 and 2004.

No warrant was yet issued by the regional trial courts of Palayan City and Guimba town for the arrest of Satur Ocampo, Liza Maza, Teodoro Casiño, and Rafael Mariano, party-list representatives of Bayan Muna and Gabriela.

The co-accused were Eugenia Magpantay of 189 A. Bonifacio Ave., Tañong, Marikina City; Vicente Cayetano of Poblacion, Norzagaray, Bulacan Ditumabo, Baler, Aurora; Emeterio Antalan of Estiponia, Pra, Tarlac; all highranking officials of the Central Luzon Regional Committee, and Nueva Ecija Privincial Committee of the CPP/NPA/NDFP, and members known only as “Ka Sendong”, “Ka Puroy”, “Ka RV”, “Ka Ra”,”Ka Mylene”, Ka Dick”, “Ka Mig”, “Ka Michelle”, “Ka Nasa”, and “Ka Apple”.

The cases were docketed as Criminal Cases Nos. 2613-G, Guimba; 1879-P, Palayan City; and 1880-P, Palayan City.

The four solons were accused by the government of allegedly funding the Central Committee of the Comunist Party of the Philippines/New People’s Army/National Democratic Front Party (CPP/NPA/NDFP) in their reported violent activities.

A panel of Nueva Ecija Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Antonio Lapus Jr., Edison Rafanan and Edie Gutierrez recommended no ball for all the accused.

The conspiracy allegedly involved the liquidation of the victims Danilo Felipe in Guimba (in 2001), Jimmy Peralta (in 2003), and Carlito Bayudang (in 2004), both in Bongabon town.

Court records showed that in the evening of February 17, 2001, Felipe was riding on his tractor in Sitio Balic-Balic, Barangay Narvacan, Guimba, when a hit squad, in conspiracy with the co-accused, kidnapped and hogtied him. He was allegedly taken to Sitio Bangkag, in Mayantoc, Nampicuan town where he was interrogated, tortured and later killed.

On December 23, 2003, around 10 p.m. Peralta was run over and killed by a white driven by the accused along the highway of Sinipit, Bongabon town.

Peralta was reportedly mistaken for his brother Jimmy who has the same build and appearance as those of the victim.

On May 6, 2004, at past 8 p.m., Bayudang was shot dead in Barangay Sta. Cruz by the same liquidation squad acting on orders from their co-conspirators.

Meanwhile, Human Rights lawyer Romeo T. Capulong cried “foul” and described it as a case of “a long pattern of persecution”.

In a press conference held yesterday, Capulong told media the action of the government was intended “to neutralize these personalities by filling non-bailable and common crimes to freeze their movements and stifle legitimate dissent”.

Rep. Ocampo, who had just planed in from Canada, shared the same sentiments and described the raps as resurrected cases.

9 dead as bus falls into ravine

Nine people were killed while several others were injured Friday (April 18) morning when an Aurora-bound bus carrying some 50 passengers fell into a 20 meter-deep ravine in Pantabangan, Nueva Ecija.

Senior Superintendent Napoleon Taas, Nueva Ecija police director, said the D-Liner bus with license plate CWW-643, had left Cabanatuan City and was on its way to Casiguran, Aurora when the driver lost control of the vehicle and plunged into the ravine at kilometer 8 in Barangay Cadactan at around 10 A.M.

Pantabangan Mayor Romeo Borja, Sr., said nine passengers died. He was in Manila when the mishap happened but his son, Romeo, Jr., Provincial Board Member told him about the mishop.

Tim Dante, Superintendent of the D-Liner, said the bus, fell into the ravine after its brake malfunction and while maneuvering a dangerous curve in Cadactan.

Dante said, one passenger, Albano Tagnas, was able to escape injury after je jumped out of the bus before it fell off the road.

Dante said rescue operations for the victims were immediately conducted by Nueva Ecija and Aurora authorities.

9 dead as bus falls into ravine

video by GMA7 News

Nueva Ecija rice millers stop buying palay as costs get steep

San Jose City – Rice mill pwners have stopped buying palay (rough rice), citing diminishing capital and the low demand of milled rice from outlets, particularly in Metro Manila.

“Our combined capital can only buy up to 60 percent of the usual volume of palay that we buy during harvest time,” Edgardo Alfonso, president of the San Jose City Ricemillers Association, said.

He said rice millers here used to buy up to 11 million metric tons of rough rice every year. The palay that they buy is miled and sold in Metro Manila and Southern Luzon.

“Our hands are tied and we cannot move on any further,” Alfonso Said.

This city has the most rice mills in Luzon. The owners, who mill rice year-round, usually send agents to various places in northern Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan and Nueva Viscaya to buy the farmers’ palay harvest.

Slow recovery

Not anymore.

“Our P2-billion combined capital was enough then as the palay buying price was from P9 to P10 per kilogram only,” Alfonso said. “But now that it reached more than P19 per kilogram, we can buy only a portion of what we used to buy.”

What aggravated the situation was the low demand for milled rice.

Recovery for capital is slow, hence money cannot be rolled on for continuous palay buying, Alfonso said. “We are accused of manipulating the buying price of palay to earn more.”

He said: “That’s not true. What we want to do is to continue buying palay so that we can mill and sell rice continuously. Our buying capacity is not that strong anymore.”

The fear of being raided by government agents on suspicion of hoarding is always there, he said. But he said they cannot hoard as they should be regularly supplying their outlets.

Asked about the increase in the buying price of rice, Alfonso said the “noise” about the alleged rice crisis, or very low supply of rice, in the world market created panic and speculation by some traders.

Panic-buying

“There was panic-buying of rice. Speculators also bought rice and kept supplies to be sold later at a very high prices,” he said.

He said government officials also sent wrong signals to the public about the real rice situation. They even surprised the public about the decision to increase the buying price of palay by National Food Authority from P12 to P17 per cavan.

It was only recently that the government announced there was a rice crisis. But it came too late, Alfonso said, adding that prices of rough rice and milled rice were already high.

For rice farmers, it was good as they would now earn more, he said. But for non-rice producers, they would be affected very much especially during the lean months, he said.

As a rule of thumb, the price of milled rice is pegged by the millers at double the buying price of palay.

“If we bought the palay at P17 per kilogram, the price of the milled rice should be P34 per kilogram. But look what’s happening. The buyers prefer the much cheaper rice now,” he said.