Marcoleta suspended due to plunder case

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan’s Third Division on Monday suspended Sen. Rodante Marcoleta due to his plunder case.

Marcoleta was charged with plunder for accepting a P75-million donation while sitting as a party-list congressman, which he admitted in a television interview in November last year.

In a statement, the Third Division said “Senator Rodante D. Marcoleta is suspended from his position as Senator of the Republic of the Philippines and from any other public office which he may now or hereafter be holding for a period of 90 days from receipt of this resolution.”

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Marcoleta’s suspension shall automatically be lifted in January upon the expiration of the 90-day period from the implementation of the court resolution.

‘No ifs and buts’

Republic Act No 7080 or the Anti-Plunder Act provides for the preventive suspension of any official charged with plunder, a nonbailable offense.

According to the court, the information sufficiently alleged that Marcoleta, “amassed ill-gotten wealth by receiving personal gifts or donation” from his donors and coaccused.

Former House Rep. Mike Defensor and businessmen Joseph Espiritu and Aristotle Viray allegedly donated P30 million, P25 million, P20 million, respectively, to the senator.

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Upon determination that the Information of the plunder case is valid, the Third Division said the issuance of preventive suspension becomes a ministerial duty.

“The Court has neither the discretion nor duty to determine whether or not a preventive suspension is required,” it said. “There are no ifs and buts about it.”

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The court stated further that “The allegations regarding the factual records and violation of Sen. Marcoleta’s freedom of expression and political participation and equal protection of the laws are matters to be threshed out and established during the trial of the cases.”

“At this stage, the Court needs only to determine whether the facts alleged in the Informations, if hypothetically admitted as true, would constitute the elements of the offenses charged therein.”

Speedy resolution

Special prosecutors already rested their case on the first day of Marcoleta’s plunder trial on Oct. 8, as they moved to have the testimonies of the remaining witnesses adopted during the senator’s bail hearing.

It will be Marcoleta’s turn to present his evidence on Thursday.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said earlier Marcoleta’s plunder case may be resolved in record-breaking time.

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He said the case could be possibly done in less than a year, in contrast to previous plunder cases which he said reached up to 15 years before being resolved. /cb