South Cotabato lawmaker fights off suspension order

MANILA, Philippines—South Cotabato Rep. Pedro Acharon is resisting efforts to suspend him from office over his pending graft case.

Acharon asked the Sandiganbayan, on Monday, to defer its ruling on the prosecution’s motion to suspend him, pending the court’s decision on his plea to dismiss the graft cases filed against him.

Acharon, in a motion filed on Monday, said that he and his co-accused have filed a joint motion to dismiss the graft cases against them for allegedly being invalid.

Since the ruling on this motion would affect the propriety or merits of his preventive suspension, the court should not yet decide whether or not to suspend him, he said.

“To rule now on prosecution’s motion to suspend (the accused) will preempt and render academic the resolution of accused’s joint motion to dismiss,” he said.

Acharon, along with several others, was earlier charged with violation of the anti-graft law for allegedly misusing P2.5 million worth of public funds and the unauthorized issuance of travel members to two local officials.

Acharon’s co-accused in the fund misuse case are Marcelino Dospueblos and Chriselda Macion, while his co-accused in the travel order case are Minda Atendido and Jose Orlando Acharon.

Earlier, the lawmaker contested the prosecution’s plea for his temporary suspension. The prosecution had sought his suspension in order to prevent him from influencing the witnesses or tampering with evidence.

According to Acharon, there is no need to temporarily take him out of office because he poses no threat to the prosecution witnesses.

Acharon has claimed that he no longer holds office in General Santos City, and besides, the government witnesses or complainants are employed by the local government of General Santos City. He further said that he could not tamper with the documentary evidence because these have been placed in the hands of the government prosecutors.

Acharon also said that his preventive suspension would deprive his constituents of a representative in Congress, and of their right to participate in the affairs of government.