By Benjamin Cuaresma
MANILA, Philippines — A Sandiganbayan justice has questioned the decision to remove former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan as an accused in two criminal cases involving an alleged P573-million kickback scheme, saying the prosecution failed to provide the court with crucial details of his immunity arrangement.
Associate Justice Gener Gito of the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division was the lone dissenter in the 2-1 ruling that granted the Office of the Ombudsman’s request to discharge Bonoan from the plunder and graft cases.
The 29-page majority ruling was released Tuesday and posted on the anti-graft court’s website Wednesday.
Gito, in his 32-page dissent, said the court was being asked to approve Bonoan’s discharge without being adequately informed about the terms of his proposed cooperation with the government.
“In effect, the prosecution would want the court to discharge Bonoan on the sole basis of the Resolution of the Ombudsman recommending his discharge on account of Bonoan’s desire to cooperate with the government,” Gito said.
He said the prosecution had not sufficiently explained what information Bonoan would provide, what his testimony would cover, and in which cases his cooperation would be used.
The justice also cited an earlier hearing in which Assistant State Prosecutor III Reza Casila-Derayunan informed the court that the immunity agreement with Bonoan was still forthcoming.
For Gito, the agreement’s terms and conditions were essential to the court’s determination of whether Bonoan should be discharged as an accused.
He cited Section 17 of Republic Act No. 6770, or the Ombudsman Act of 1989, and said the provision did not give the Ombudsman unlimited authority to grant immunity to an accused who had already been charged before the court.
Gito also questioned why Bonoan should be discharged if the prosecution believed there was prima facie evidence against him indicating a reasonable certainty of conviction.
Associate Justices Zaldy Trespeses, the division chair, and Maryann Corpuz-Mañalac voted to grant the prosecution’s motion.
The ruling leaves Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and three former Department of Public Works and Highways officials as accused in the cases: then-assistant district engineer Denryl Caesar Cortuna and district engineers Manny Bulusan and Arturo Gonzales Jr.
The charges accuse the respondents of participating in an alleged scheme involving illegal budget insertions and project allocations within the DPWH infrastructure program for 2025.
Bonoan, 81, was arrested in June and has remained at the Philippine National Police General Hospital in Camp Crame. The Ombudsman later sought his discharge from the cases so he could cooperate with the government and testify in other investigations involving alleged corruption in flood control projects.
Bonoan has since appeared as a prosecution witness in a malversation case against former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. involving an alleged ghost flood control project in Bulacan.
During his testimony, Bonoan recalled that incumbent senators in 2024 had availed themselves of DPWH’s so-called “leadership fund” for priority projects.
The Fifth Division, however, said the decision to seek the discharge of an accused falls within the Ombudsman’s prosecutorial discretion in determining which accused should be used as a state witness.
The court said such a determination should generally be given substantial weight unless it clearly violates the rules, noting that courts do not ordinarily have a complete view of the strength of the prosecution’s evidence until the trial has concluded.
Estrada and the three former DPWH officials had opposed Bonoan’s discharge.
Estrada’s lawyers argued that removing Bonoan from the case could affect the senator’s defense.
The original information alleged that Estrada and Bonoan caused, facilitated or ensured the inclusion of the questioned projects in the national budget. The amended information later stated that Estrada acted “by himself and/or through” Bonoan.
Estrada, who remains detained, said Wednesday that he respected the Sandiganbayan’s ruling but would consider available legal remedies.
“My faith in our judicial system remains firm. I will continue to stand by the truth and pursue every lawful means available to protect my rights and clear my name and honor,” Estrada said.
Meanwhile, the PNP General Hospital said Bonoan remained clinically stable and continued to receive maintenance medication.
Hospital chief for internal medicine Lt. Col. Benaly Bayani said Bonoan no longer needed a wheelchair for mobility but that any decision on his release from the hospital remained with the Sandiganbayan.
The former public works secretary has been receiving medical care at the PNP hospital while the court proceedings concerning his discharge and continued detention are being addressed.
ia/xf
