Former solons, Napoles face fresh batch of pork barrel scam case
Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines – The Sandiganbayan on Thursday formally received the second batch of corruption charges against five former congressmen and accused mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles over the pork barrel scam.
Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales has approved the filing of corruption complaints which were filed Thursday afternoon, Assistant Ombudsman Asryman Rafanan said in a press conference.
Facing the corruption raps are former Masbate Representative Rizalina Seachon-Lanete, APEC party-list Representative Edgar Valdez, Agusan del Sur Representative Rodolfo Plaza, Benguet Representative Samuel Dangwa, and Cagayan de Oro City Representative Constantino Jaraula.
Lanete, incumbent Masbate governor, and Valdez are charged with plunder for allegedly pocketing P108.405 million and P57.787 million in kickbacks, respectively, from their Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF) transactions from 2004 to 2010.
Meanwhile, the others face malversation, direct bribery, and other graft and corrupt practices for allegedly pocketing the following kickbacks: Plaza (P26.7 million), Dangwa (P42.1 million), and Jaraula (P20.8 million) in PDAF.
They are among the second batch of respondents in the pork barrel scam purportedly masterminded by Napoles.
The lawmakers were accused of spending their PDAF to ghost agricultural and livelihood projects for kickbacks using the foundations linked to Napoles from 2007 to 2009.
Lanete’s chief of staff Jose Sumalpong and Napoles’ employee John Raymund De Asis also face plunder case in this batch of pork scam cases.
Also facing the malversation raps are Dangwa’s chief of staff Jasper Kapuna, and Plaza’s chiefs of staff Erwin Dangwa and Carlos Lozada.
Napoles is already under trial for plunder in the Sandiganbayan for the first pork barrel scam case involving Senators Ramon Revilla Jr., Jinggoy Estrada, and Juan Ponce Enrile.
Also charged in the second pork barrel scam case are Budget Undersecretary Mario Relampagos and his staff Rosario Nuñez, Lalaine Paule and Marilou Bare;
Technology Resource Center (TRC) director general Antonio Ortiz; deputy director general Dennis Cunanan; department manager Francisco Figura and chief accountant Marivic Jover;
National Agri-Business Corp. (Nabcor) president Alan Javellana, paralegal Victor Roman Cacal, General Services Unit head Romulo Relevo, bookkeeper Maria Ninez Guañizo, chief accountant Ma. Julie Villaralvo-Johnson, and director for financial management Services Rhodora Mendoza;
National Livelihood Development Corp. (NLDC) president Gondelina Amata, division chief Gregoria Buenaventura, director Emmanuel Alexis Sevidal, chief financial specialist Sofia Cruz and department manager Chita Jalandoni;
Representatives of NGOs linked with Napoles, namely, Countrywide Agri and Rural Economic and Development Foundation (CARED), Masaganang Ani para sa Magsasaka Foundation Inc. (MAMFI), Philippine Social Development Foundation Inc. (PSDFI) and the Social Development Program for Farmer Foundation, Inc. (SDPFFI).
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