Imelda fights court-ordered seizure of San Juan properties

MANILA, Philippines—Ilocos Norte Representative Imelda Marcos has asked the Sandiganbayan to give her a chance to oppose the government’s move to seize three of her San Juan properties for failing to pay a P10 million judgment.

The widow of deposed dictator Ferdinand Marcos, through her lawyer Robert Sison, said she never received the September 2010 decision ordering her to pay the government the P10 million, reportedly representing ill-gotten funds that her husband had ordered withdrawn from the National Food Authority.

Marcos was also asked to shoulder another P1.95 million in damages.

The Sandiganbayan’s  Fifth Division earlier issued a writ of execution for Marcos to pay the amount ordered in the civil case, its ruling having become final.

But when Marcos failed to make the payment after several months, government lawyers asked the court to seize instead the three San Juan properties in her name.

In her opposition to this latest move, Marcos said the Sandiganbayan had given the copy of the decision to Sison. But while Sison had represented Marcos in several suits, he had not formally entered his appearance as her lawyer in this particular case.

Given that she was never given a copy of the ruling, it was premature for the decision to be enforced, Marcos said.

“It is defendant Marcos’ humble submission that the default decision against her has never become final. A writ for its execution could not have been validly issued,” the pleading said.

Marcos’ opposition to the government’s move was not filed on time, but she has filed a motion asking the court to admit it.

Her lawyer was unable to file it on time because Marcos had asked him to accompany her on a recent trip to China, and because he had been swamped with work.

The P10 million that Marcos was ordered to pay represented the NFA’s rebate granted the Philippine National Lines, which is a corporation put up in 1976 to establish a shipping service.

The Sandiganbayan had ruled that the money was illegally transferred to private coffers and that Marcos, as the legal representative of her husband, should pay the amount to the government.