Former Negros Oriental representative Jing Paras files plunder and graft complaints against retired Commission on Elections (Comelec) chair Sixto Brillantes Jr. and seven others over the alleged ‘midnight deal’ with Smartmatic. MARC JAYSON CAYABYAB / INQUIRER.net
Former Negros Oriental Rep. Jacinto “Jing” Paras on Monday filed plunder and graft complaints against retired-Commission on Elections (Comelec) chair Sixto Brillantes Jr. and seven others over the alleged “midnight deal” with Smartmatic for the repair, refurbishment and diagnostics of 82,000 vote-counting machines for the May 9 polls, a contract later voided by the Supreme Court.
Paras asked the Office of the Ombudsman to investigate Brillantes, retired commissioners Lucenito Tagle and Elias Yusoph, incumbent commissioners Al Parreño and Christian Robert Lim, and Smartmatic officials Cesar Flores, Elie Moreno and Marlon Garcia.
In his complaint, Paras said the Comelec officials approved the P268.8-million deal to extend the warranty of the 82,000 Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines which the Comelec bought from Smartmatic.
READ: Group accuses Comelec of favoring Smartmatic
This deal was later declared null and void by the Supreme Court because the Comelec failed to justify direct contracting with Smartmatic.
Paras said though he had no evidence the Comelec officials received money from Smartmatic, he was sure the officials received favors from Smartmatic to go through direct contracting instead of undergoing a public bidding.
“Smartmatic seemed to have a very tight hold on public respondents. That Smartmatic-TIM is able to sway them whereover or whatsover is pretty obvious… And there could only be one conclusion, that is they received monetary consideration from Smartmatic-TIM in exchange tor their strong accommodation to give Smartmatic-TIM extended warranty contract,” his complaint read.
In an interview, Paras said the taxpayers were cheated of money when the Comelec underwent the alternative mode of procurement without the benefit of a public bidding.
Paras said the commissioners acted with bad faith, negligence and partiality when they gave undue preference to Smartmatic in the extended warranty contract.
Though the contract was later ruled null and void, Paras maintained his suspicion that the commissioners also received monetary favors or “pabaon” to award Smartmatic the contract.
Brillantes and the Comelec maintained that the deal was above board.
READ: Comelec insists nothing illegal with P268.8-M contract with Smartmatic-TIM
But the deal was signed three days before Brillantes and senior commissioners Tagle and Yusoph retired Feb. 2 last year. The election watchdog hit the contract as a “midnight deal.”
“Outright, we can’t say the exact amount of money. But from the circumstances wherein they were pushing very hard (for the contract).. obviously mayroong kalokohan na nangyari…Lalo na, (three) days before retirement (nila in-approve),” Paras said.
Paras said he also asked the Ombudsman to investigate the incumbent Comelec officials for possible impeachment before Congress.
In a statement, Brillantes denied the so-called “publicity” of Paras, which he dismissed as old news.
“Ang tagal na publicity lang ni Paras ‘yan. Not a single cent was paid to Smartmatic. Will await copy of charges and will respond accordingly,” Brillantes said.
Brillantes had called the poll watchdog members noisy critics who only wanted to spoil the election preparations. He denied that there was any midnight deal, saying Smartmatic was most capable of conducting the repair, refurbishment and diagnostics of its own machines.
After filing a temporary restraining order, the Supreme Court later declared null and void the extended warranty contract.
Former Comelec lawyer Melchor Magamo on April 1 last year filed a similar complaint asking the Ombudsman to investigate the Comelec for the alleged illegal midnight deal.
Another affiant, David Diwa, president of the National Labor Union, alleged that the contract may as well be Brillantes, Tagle and Yusoph’s “retirement pabaon (gift).”
READ: Ombudsman asked to probe Comelec-Smartmatic ‘midnight deal’
To continue with the automated elections, the Comelec en banc under incumbent chair Andres Bautista in August last year unanimously approved the lease of 93,977 all-new optical mark reader (OMR) machines from Smartmatic, ditching the plan to reuse the old counting machines to be supplemented with brand new ones./rga
READ: Comelec to rent 93K machines for 2016 but what about 80K in storage?