Ex-DBP exec asks antigraft court to lift hold order

MANILA, Philippines—A former senior official of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has asked the Sandiganbayan to lift a hold departure order issued by the court on Jan. 21 and allow her to travel abroad.

In an urgent motion before the antigraft court’s Third Division, Cresenciana Bundoc, former DBP senior vice president, said she and her family will be traveling to Hong Kong from April 4 to 8 upon the invitation of Ponciano Duldulao Jr., general manager of the DBP Remittance Center HK Ltd.

Bundoc is one of the accused in the graft complaint connected to the alleged P660-million behest loan granted to businessman Roberto V. Ongpin.

Bundoc said she had promised her family a vacation to celebrate her retirement, the birthdays of her daughter, grandson and husband, and their wedding anniversary.

The case stemmed from the complaint on Aug. 5, 2011, by incumbent officials of the DBP against Ongpin and former DBP  officers and board directors for allegedly granting loans amounting to P660 million to Deltaventures Resources Inc. (DVRI), a company beneficially owned by Ongpin.

The complaint alleged that the DBP, while admitting that the loans were fully paid on Dec. 8, 2009, granted the loans with extraordinary speed, short of collateral, with the borrower, DVRI, being under-capitalized and Ongpin being a crony of the Arroyo administration.

In another graft case in the same division, Ernest Escaler, one of the coaccused with former Justice Secretary Hernando Perez in a graft complaint, also sought the permission of the court to travel to London and Italy from May 20 to June 24 for business.

Escaler, through his counsel Juan Marcos Reyes, said the hold-departure order against him remained despite the dismissal of the instant case on April 21, 2009, by the court.—Cynthia D. Balana