Acosta asks court to dump aunt as state witness

New LLDA Chief Nereus Acosta. comelec.gov.ph photo

Presidential adviser and Laguna Lake Development Authority chief Nereus Acosta has asked the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division to deny the prosecution’s plea to take in his aunt Nemia Bornidor as a state witness and to discharge her as an accused in their graft case.

In his opposition to the prosecution’s plea, Acosta said the prosecution’s move came too late and it had no factual and legal basis. It shows Bornidor’s and her family’s attempt to vilify him, he said, and also shows that the prosecution does not have enough evidence to convict him.

Bornidor’s proposed testimony is “immaterial, irrelevant, and impertinent to the issues for resolution” in his cases, Acosta said.

Acosta and Bornidor were charged with graft in connection with allegedly improper release of P2.5 million in financial assistance from Acosta’s Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or pork barrel to the Bukidnon Integrated Network of Home Industries Inc. (Binhi), a nongovernment organization where Bornidor was the project coordinator. At the time of the transaction in 2001, Acosta was the Bukidnon representative in Congress.

Last year, Bornidor sought to become a state witness, a move that the Office of the Ombudsman approved.

The Ombudsman’s Office of the Special Prosecutor said Bornidor could testify on Acosta’s actual participation in the operations of Binhi, including the identification of projects, determination of sources of funds and donor and actual use of the funds.

The OSP also said Bornidor could take the stand on Acosta’s alleged plan to use Binhi as a springboard to widen his political base and to cater to the financial needs of his constituents and partymates to ensure his reelection.

In his opposition, Acosta said the information that Bornidor provided in her application to become state witness were beyond what was stated in the charge sheet against them, and admitting her testimony would violate his constitutional rights.

One of the things he questioned was Bornidor’s claim that while he was never an officer of Binhi, he was actually its brains and final decision maker. He said the purported handwritten memos that Bornidor produced to support her assertion had no basis.

He denied that the notes were his, and said the notes were irrelevant even if they were really his. He pointed out that the memos were dated 2005 and 2007, but the acts he was accused of committing took place in 2001 and 2002.

Bornidor also mentioned other acts that took place after 2001 and 2002, and these therefore had no bearing on the case, Acosta said.

As for Bornidor’s allegations that he planned to use Binhi for his political ambitions and to help his constituents and allies, Acosta said these were all irrelevant.

He pointed out that he was not being charged for any election offense or for using Binhi for politics.

Originally posted at 06:37 pm | Wednesday, March 21,  2012