Sandigan chief: Plunder harder to prove under Arroyo doctrine

MANILA, Philippines — Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Geraldine Faith Econg said on Tuesday that the Supreme Court needs to review the doctrine that made it tougher to prove that a public official committed plunder.

Econg, who is among the candidates for a vacancy in the high tribunal, told a panel of the Judicial and Bar Council that it has been difficult for courts to convict the “main plunderer” in a case because of the so-called Arroyo doctrine.

“[I] believe that rule in the Arroyo doctrine on plunder must be revisited and [reviewed] again. Because truth be told, it is difficult for Sandiganbayan justices, the court itself, to pass a conviction,” Econg said.

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Her remarks were in reply to a question posed by retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza during the first day of panel interviews for the position to be vacated by Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier on Nov. 16.

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In the 2016 decision (Macapagal-Arroyo vs People) by then Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin, the high court ruled that the prosecution must identify a main plunderer and coconspirators, and prove that the main plunderer directly benefited from the cause.

Econg, who has been serving in the antigraft court in the last 10 years, stressed that the “chain conspiracy” instead of the “wheel conspiracy” should be applied to plunder cases.

The Arroyo ruling defined chain conspiracy as having a “vertical” sequence of cooperation or communication in committing plunder. Under the wheel conspiracy, on the other hand, a single person or group is at the center of interaction or transaction to successfully commit a crime.

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Requirements

“Imagine … we have to have a main plunderer who should be the public official as the main plunderer and it must be proven that said public official has a personal interest,” Econg said.

“I think it’s sufficient that when an act of plunder is being thought of …, some people will just join in the conspiracy and just become a conspirator with some government officials,” she added, noting that there are times that a conspiracy will not have a “leader.”

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On Monday, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla expressed the same sentiment, saying the requirements under the Arroyo doctrine have allowed actual plunderers to get away with the crime because they could just transfer the stolen funds through dummies, middlemen and shell companies.

In 2018, Econg authored the Sandiganbayan ruling that acquitted former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Jr. of plunder in connection with P224 million in “pork barrel” funds that he allegedly allocated to fake nongovernmental organizations set up by businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles.

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Hounded by critics, Econg said the prosecution failed to prove that Revilla committed plunder, or received kickbacks from the pork barrel fund. /cb