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Sol Gen moves to intervene in Garcia plea bargain deal


(Updated 10:03 p.m.) The Office of the Solicitor General has asked the Sandiganbayan to allow it to intervene, in behalf of the Philippine government, in the controversial plea bargain agreement between the Ombudsman and former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) comptroller Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia. In a press conference in Malacañang, Solicitor General Anselmo Cadiz said the government filed Wednesday morning before the Sandiganbayan an urgent motion for leave to intervene with attached petition for intervention. He said that the Office of the Solicitor General does not normally engage in trials of the Sandiganbayan, but deemed it necessary to seek to intervene at this time because the Sandiganbayan approved the plea bargain agreement allowing Garcia to plead guilty to lesser offenses of indirect bribery and violation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act instead of plunder, which was backed up by strong evidence. "Nakita natin dito na di po napangalaagaan at naprotektahan yung interes ng Republika ng Pilipinas at ng taumbayan kaya pinapakiusap po namin sa husgado...na payagan kaming makapasok," he said.
Cadiz said they are asking the Sandiganbayan to suspend proceedings, revoke the bail that allowed Garcia's temporary release, and to nullify or declare null and void the plea bargaining agreement that was approved by the Sandiganbayan last May 2010. ‘Illegal, irregular’ In its motion to intervene filed before the Sandiganbayan, the OSG described Garcia’s plea bargain deal as “illegal, irregular… and beneficial only to the accused." “The honorable court completely disregarded its earlier finding that the evidence of guilt is strong, and no longer considered the weight and sufficiency of the evidence on record for the purposes of approving the plea bargaining agreement," the OSG said in its motion. Cadiz also said that the Ombudsman’s agreement with Garcia was “entered into without the consent of the offended party," which in this case was the AFP. The solicitor general said that the AFP, through its Judge Advocate General’s Office (JAGO), informed his office that neither the Ombudsman nor the Office of the Special Prosecutor made any effort to inform the military of the agreement. Cadiz explained that according to the rules of court, the offended party must also give its consent before a plea bargain deal is approved, but in this case the AFP was not even informed of the agreement. Cadiz said AFP chief Gen. Ricardo David signed the petition for intervention to show that the AFP does not agree with the plea bargain deal.
'MIDNIGHT DEAL'
The plea bargain agreement between retired Major General Carlos Garcia and the Office of the Ombudsman was approved by the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court during the last two months of the Arroyo administration. This information was revealed in the motion for intervention filed on Wednesday by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) before the anti-graft court, belying earlier claims by the Ombudsman and the Office of the Special Prosecutor that the agreement is still awaiting confirmation. (See: Govt asks Sandiganbayan to allow intervention in Garcia plea bargain deal) As cited by the OSG motion, the Sandiganbayan Second Division had already promulgated a resolution approving Garcia’s plea bargain deal as early as May 4, 2010—less than two months before President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s term ended. The OSG likewise revealed that the plea bargain deal was approved by the Ombudsman on February 25, 2010, endorsed to the Sandiganbayan through a joint motion for approval on March 16, 2010, and was approved by the anti-graft court two months later. Due to the timing of the plea bargain deal’s approval, Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said there is reason to believe that the Garcia-Ombudsman agreement was another “midnight deal." “While we cannot be definitive about it sans the full facts of the complete picture surrounding the circumstances, there is reason to suspect that it was a midnight deal," she said in a text message to reporters on Wednesday.
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The OSG likewise questioned the “unusual speed" by which the Sandiganbayan approved Garcia’s bail petition. “The urgent motion to post bail by accused Garcia is dated December 16, 2010. It was filed with the honorable court on the same day and likewise granted on said day. In other words, these were all done in a record (time) of only one day! What special circumstances obtained in this case to warrant a deviation from the ordinary three-day notice rule?" the motion read. Cadiz likewise stressed that existing laws and jurisprudence has upheld the authority of the OSG to intervene in cases “in the promotion and protection of public interest". Plunder case In 2005, a military court found Garcia guilty of violating the Articles of War 96 (undeclared wealth) and 97 (conduct prejudicial to good military order and discipline). The charges stemmed from allegations that he failed to declare his true assets and enjoyed permanent resident status (having a “green card") in the United States. He was stripped of his rank and was dishonorably discharged from the service. His benefits were also forfeited. He was likewise sentenced to two years of hard labor. After the military court concluded its own hearing on the case with a conviction, the matter was tossed to the Sandiganbayan. Garcia, who was in charge of disbursement of military funds when he held the post of AFP comptroller, is by far the highest-ranked military official undergoing trial by the anti-graft court for the crime of plunder, or graft and corruption on a massive scale. A member of the Philippine Military Academy class of 1971, Garcia was charged with plunder, a non-bailable offense, and violation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) Section 4-A for allegedly amassing P300 million in bribe money. However, he entered a "not guilty plea" to these charges. He instead pleaded guilty to the lesser offenses of knowledge of unlawful transactions under Section 4-B of the AMLA, and to direct bribery, a bailable offense under the Revised Penal Code. Last December, Garcia walked free from detention at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Quezon City after posting a P60,000 bail. Aside from him, also charged with plunder are Garcia's wife and three sons, who are alleged to have either brought or spent the questionable wealth. The three are all detained at different locations in the United States and are currently the subject of extradition cases — with Sophia Dedace, Andreo C. Calonzo, LBG/JV, GMANews.TV
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