MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Immigration recently issued a hold departure order against former Agriculture Secretary Luis Ramon “Cito” Lorenzo, Agriculture Undersecretary Jocelyn “JocJoc” Bolante, a congresswoman, two former governors and several others implicated in the P728-million fertilizer fund scam.
Also included in the HDO were Congresswoman Nanette Daza, former Marinduque Governor Carmencita Reyes, former Governor Leandro Verceles Jr. , former Assistant Secretary Ibarra Poliquit, and Department of Agriculture (DA) Regional Directors Cesar Rodriguez, Dennis Araullo, Ricardo Oblena, Leo Caneda, Oscar Parawan, Roger Chio, Sumail Sekak and Eduardo Lecciones jr.
The HDO was issued by Immigration Commissioner Ricardo David on June 22 pursuant to a Department of Justice (DoJ) letter signed by Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras.
The DoJ issues Hold Departure Orders “against any person, either motu proprio (on his/her own), or upon the request of the Head of a Department of the Government; the head or a constitutional body or commission; the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court for the Judiciary; the Senate President or the House Speaker for the Legislature when the adverse party is the Government, or any of its agencies or instrumentalities or in the interest of national security, public safety or public health.”
The DoJ, through the BI, issued the HDO against Mr. Lorenzo and Mr. Bolante, after the Office of the Ombudsman ordered the filing of plunder cases against them.