Court allows hospital arrest for Bonoan, but inside Crame

80-YEAR-OLD ACCUSED The Sandiganbayan only “partially granted” the request of former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan, who preferred to stay at a private hospital. Photo taken on June 2 when the police brought Bonoan to court a day after his arrest. —GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

The Sandiganbayan has allowed former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan to be placed under hospital arrest, but not in the private hospital he preferred.

In a resolution dated June 4 and released on Friday, the antigraft court’s Fifth Division said Bonoan, who faces the nonbailable charge of plunder in a case arising from the public works corruption scandal, will be confined at the Philippine National Police General Hospital inside Camp Crame, Quezon City.

READ: Bonoan to be transferred to PNP hospital upon doctor’s clearance

In a motion filed on June 1, the day he was placed under arrest, the 80-year-old Bonoan requested that he be allowed to stay at The Medical City in Pasig City.

“The court partially grants accused Bonoan’s motion,” the resolution said. “In here, accused Bonoan has established that his detention in a regular jail facility would pose a real, imminent and irreparable danger to his life.”

Medical findings

In a message to reporters on Friday, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, whose department exercises administrative control over the PNP, said Bonoan “is not in the best of health” and had undergone “two procedures this week to treat his heart attack.”

According to a medical certificate dated May 29 issued by Bonoan’s personal physician and later submitted to the court, the accused was suffering from Stage IV chronic renal disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, gouty arthritis, a spinal condition called spondylolisthesis, and prostate cancer.

Another medical certificate dated June 1 said the former secretary is suffering from hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease (Stage 4), electrolyte imbalance, and severe coronary artery disease with stenosis and probable thrombus formation in his coronary arteries, and heart enlargement.

Citing these findings, Bonoan’s lawyers said he would require continuous clinical monitoring and immediate access to specialized emergency care. They said the Medical City had the specialized equipment and advanced facilities for their client’s condition, unlike nearby government hospitals.

They also stressed that Bonoan could not be considered a flight risk, noting that he voluntarily returned to the country from the United States in January to attend the Senate blue ribbon committee hearings on the corruption scandal.

Prosecutors under the Office of the Ombudsman opposed Bonoan’s motion, saying his justifications for hospital arrest were “insufficient and questionable.” They also questioned the veracity of the medical certificates for being mere “unauthenticated photographs rather than an original or photocopy.”

Findings ‘cant be ignored’

They also said his lawyers’ concerns over the inadequacy of nearby government hospitals were “purely speculative because he failed to name any specific hospital or provide evidence that they indeed lack the specialized equipment and treatment he requires.”

In granting the motion, the court said: “While the Prosecution argues that the medical certificates submitted by the defense are unauthenticated photographs of medical certificates, the medical findings therein are something that the court cannot ignore to prevent an irreversible incident.”

It also acknowledged his voluntary return to the country from abroad and his submission to the court’s jurisdiction when he was issued an arrest warrant.

“These overt acts reflect accused’s respect for the legal processes and willingness to face the charges against him,” it said.

Bonoan, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and three other former officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways are facing plunder and graft charges for allegedly receiving P573 million in kickbacks through the manipulation of the public works budget in 2025.

Bonoan and Estrada’s arraignment in the two cases was reset from June 4 to June 30 in view of their pending motions to quash, while their three coaccused pleaded not guilty on Thursday. —With a report from Jason Sigales