Ombudsman Morales given 30 days to review Garcia plea deal

The Sandiganbayan anti-graft court has given Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales 30 days to review the records concerning the plea bargain agreement between her predecessor Merceditas Gutierrez and former military comptroller Carlos Garcia, an accused plunderer. Morales originally asked for 15 days, but the court decided to give her 15 more days given the voluminous records of the Garcia case. “The Court feels the period asked for by the Honorable Ombudsman may not be enough therefore the Court accords the Honorable Ombudsman 30 days," said Associate Justice Teresita Diaz-Baldos, chairman of the Sandiganbayan division handling the case. Morales, a retired Supreme Court justice, was named Ombudsman during President Benigno Aquino III’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July 25. Her predecessor, Gutierrez, resigned last May days before she was expected to face an impeachment trial at the Senate for alleged betrayal of public trust. The controversial plea bargaining deal entered into on Feb. 25, 2010 and approved by the Sandiganbayan last May 19 had allowed Garcia, his wife Clarita and their sons Ian Carl, Juan Paulo and Timothy Mark to walk off plunder and money laundering charges after the former military official pleaded guilty to lesser offenses of direct bribery and facilitating money laundering. He also surrendered to the government assets valued at P135 million including bank deposits, real estate properties in the Philippines and in the United States and a number of motor vehicles. Malacañang, through the Office of the Solicitor General, challenged the propriety and legality of the deal, but it was overruled by the Sandiganbayan. The OSG then filed a motion for reconsideration, which is still pending. In her motion, Morales also asked that resolution of the OSG appeal be held in abeyance, a prayer likewise approved by the court. — KBK, GMA News