Sandigan defers Lapid arraignment for graft over fertilizer fund

The Sandiganbayan has deferred Sen. Manuel “Lito” Lapid’s arraignment for graft over his alleged involvement in the fertilizer fund scam.

In a hearing on Tuesday, the antigraft court first division allowed to defer Lapid’s arraignment set on Jan 14, Thursday, pending his motion to dismiss the graft charges against him.

The court reset the arraignment to March 10.

Lapid had filed a motion to dismiss the case, citing inordinate delay on the part of the Ombudsman investigators for sitting on his case for five years before filing the charge against him.

Ombudsman prosecutors filed one count of graft against the outgoing senator for allegedly violating Section 3(e) and 3(g) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act over the purchase of allegedly overpriced foliar fertilizers when he was Pampanga governor.

READ: Lapid faces graft rap over overpriced fertilizers

State prosecutors said that in 2004, Lapid who was then a Pampanga governor purchased 3,880 liters of macro-micro foliar fertilizers which was overpriced by P4.268 million.

The transaction gave undue benefit to Malayan Pacific Trading Corp. (MPTC) and D.A. Vazquez Macro Micro Fertilizer Resources (DAVMMFR).

Prosecutors also noted badges of fraud in the procurement, such as the purchase of the fertilizers from MPTC without public bidding and the inordinate speed by which the transaction was consummated.

The Ombudsman said Lapid issued the purchase order/request on May 24, 2004, on the same day the fertilizers were delivered. The MPTC was also fully paid on May 26, 2004, or just 14 days after the price quotations were submitted by DAVMMFR on May 12.

Lapid also certified that there were no more alternatives to the purchased fertilizers to unlawfully resort to direct contracting despite the availability of a cheaper substitute, Ombudsman prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Lapid gave undue benefit to the suppliers to cause government undue injury worth P4.268 million.

Lapid denied there was an overprice in the fertilizers and maintained that there were no longer cheaper substitutes in the market.

Lapid’s funds for the foliar fertilizers were sourced from the P728-million “Ginintuang Masaganang Ani Program” of the Department of Agriculture under the administration of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo meant to provide poor farmers with fertilizer, irrigation, seeds, education and training, loans, as well as dryers and post-harvest facilities.

The P728-million fertilizer funds were part of an alleged scam of diverting the money to Arroyo’s campaign kitty to pay off favored local officials. The funds were released three months before the 2004 elections. Arroyo was cleared by the Ombudsman over the alleged scam.

Lapid is seeking the mayoralty seat in Angeles City, Pampanga, in 2016 after his six-year term as senator. He has been known as a top absentee in the Senate. His son Mark, current head of the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority, is seeking a Senate seat in 2016 as a guest candidate of Liberal Party. RC