Graft raps vs Chiz Escudero, Sorsogon execs

Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero. SENATE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — A lawyer has filed graft and other criminal complaints against Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero and several officials of Sorsogon province at the Office of the Ombudsman over alleged financial irregularities involving more than P352 million.

This “systematic corruption” happened during Escudero’s term as provincial governor (2019 to 2022) and was also flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA) in a 2021 report, according to the complaint filed on Friday by Eldrige Marvin Aceron.

Also named respondents in the complaint are members of the provincial government’s bids and awards committee: acting provincial accountant Rena Garcia; a general services officer named identified only as Rosalina; and the provincial treasurer who was not named in the document.

READ: Chiz Escudero asks SC to disbar critic

Questionable transactions

Aceron sued them for graft, technical malversation, fraud against the public treasury, falsification of public documents.

There was no immediate comment from Escudero regarding the complaint.

Aceron cited the following transactions or expenses earlier reported by COA involving public funds totaling P352,679,063:

• Contracts for “overlapping” and “physically impossible” infrastructure projects that were awarded to contractors using the personnel and equipment, all worth P125.7 million.

• Projects involving P15.47 million that went unimplemented for six years, including P10 million earmarked for typhoon relief

• Janitorial and laundry contracts, worth P8.44 million, that were supported by falsified documents, conflicting notarizations, and fabricated client references

• Tupad (Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers) disbursements found to have spurious signatures, missing authorizations, and improper implementation, amounting to P1.65 million

• Development projects worth P5.65 million that were “improperly” charged to the province’s development fund as they were not included in the approved procurement plan.

• Property, plant, and equipment accounts, including “ghost assets” and demolished structures that remained recorded in government books, totaling P195.74 million.

‘Deliberate acts’

“These are not mere accounting errors. These are deliberate acts that robbed the children of Sorsogon of their future. While families struggled through the pandemic, public funds were diverted, mishandled, or left to rot in government accounts,” Aceron said in a statement he issued during his filing.

“Moreover, 2021 is not an isolated year of malfeasance. The COA reports for 2022 and 2023 reveal the same pattern—qualified opinions on the province’s financial statements that persist to this very day,” he added.

The complaint was filed a month after Aceron lodged an ethics case against Escudero at the Senate over alleged illegal campaign donations.

In his statement on Friday, Aceron said he had not met Escudero personally and had no ax to grind against the senator.

“It’s my personal fight, but I am not alone. I have at least 370 people with me, and we will do this. We will continue doing this until we get some justice. He’s the senator with many anomalies. So we are filing charges against him,” he said.