Sandiganbayan justices face raps over plea bargain deal ruling

MANILA, Philippines—A criminal complaint was filed on Wednesday against three Sandiganbayan justices who approved the plea bargain deal between former military comptroller Carlos Garcia and the Office of the Ombudsman.

In a six-page joint complaint affidavit, anti-corruption advocates Risa Hontiveros, Leah Navarro and retired Brigadier General Danilo Lim claimed that the three justices of the antigraft court’s second division violated Article 206 of the Revised Penal Code.

The complainants said the approval of the plea bargain agreement by Associate Justices Edilberto Sandoval, Teresita Diaz-Baldos and Samuel Martires was highly irregular considering “the undue haste as it was approved on the day the resignation of former Ombudsman Mercitas Gutierrez took effect.”

“The (second) division beat to the punch whatever action or decision on the case the incoming Ombudsman might take,” the complaint read.

The complainants said that Section 1, Rule 118 of the Rules of Court provides that plea bargaining should be done before trial.

They also pointed out that the aggrieved party, in this case the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), should have given its consent before a plea bargain agreement is entered into. However, they said, the Office of the Ombudsman and Garcia disregarded this consent from the AFP.

“According to the Supreme Court, it is the duty of the court to inquire into the circumstances upon which the plea bargaining agreement is premised. They (justices) would have noticed the failure of the prosecution to secure the consent of the offended party, which immediately would be the AFP,” the complainants said.

They added that the Sandiganbayan’s decision “is a complete turnaround from the declaration of the division in denying the motion for bail on Jan. 7, 2010 when they declared that there is evidence showing that the guilt of the accused is strong.”

“The foregoing circumstances are clear as daylight as to cause the justices to disapprove or reject said plea bargaining agreement,” they added.