Land of the Morning: Sandiganbayan

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Forfeiture Case Vs. Tan Companies

MANILA

In a case filed in July 1987, the Philippine Government (PH) pursued business tycoon Lucio Tan on allegations that some of his companies have stocks forming part of the ill-gotten wealth of the late President Ferdinand Marcos.

The companies involved in the case include Asia Brewer Inc., Allied Banking Corp., Foremost Farms, Himmel Industries Inc., Grandspan Development Corp., Silangan Holdings Inc., Dominium Realth and Construction Corp., Shareholdings Inc., and Fortune Tobacco Corp. (FTC).

Fortune Tobacco Corp.

The state alleged that 60 percent of the FTC stocks are actually part of the Marcos ill-gotten wealth.

In 2010, a new tobacco company, Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp. Inc. (PMFTCI), was created as a joint venture between Philip Morris (50.4%) and Fortune Tobacco Corp. (49.6%). Tan sits as chairman of both FTC and PHFTCI. The new venture has caused confusion on the part of the prosecutors who alleged that the new venture instead was a merger, dissolving FTC in the process. But the Sandiganbayan disagreed.

(Photo courtesy of Forbes.com)

Source

Macon Araneta: "Sandigan says Philip Morris merger not a done deal," Manila Standard Today 21 March 2011

Monday, February 21, 2011

PBMA Divine Master Convicted of Graft

Ruben Ecleo Jr., Divine Master of the Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association (PBMA) and Dinagat Islands Representative, faces arrest after the Sandiganbayan issued a warrant of arrest on 10 February 2011. The graft court made the decision final and executory after it dismissed his motion to recall the court resolution and teh warrant of arrest against him.

The Sandiganbayan convicted him of three graft cases in connection to three government-funded projects implemented in San Jose, a town in the island where he used to be mayor, that had been given to PBMA Builders as contractor.

Source

Sunnex: "Court: Ecleo's graft conviction final," Sun.Star News Exchange 21 February 2011

Quotes that History Will Remember

Would the bishops rather that we keep mum or we lie about it? Would they want us to just keep quiet about this?--Aleta Tolentino, PCSO Director

We do not want to turn over another unfinished business to the next administration. It stops with us.--Teresita Deles, Presidential Adviser for the Peace Process

I believed then, as I believe now, that the court... was overly intrusive with respect to a power that does not belong to it by restrainingh without hearing a coequal branch of government.--Associate Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Supreme Court of the Philippines

This Court, in striking down EO 1 creating the Truth Commission, overrules the manifest will of the Filipino people to start the difficult task of putting an end to graft and corruption in government, denies the President his basic constitutional power to determine the facts in his faithful execution of the law, and suppresses whatever truth may come out in the purely fact-finding investigation of the Truth Commission... History will record the ruling today of the Court's majority as a severe case of judicial overreach that made the incumbent President a diminished Executive in an affront to a co-equal branch of government, crippled our already challenged justice system, and crushed the hopes of the long suffering Filipino people for an end to graft and corruption in government.--Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, Supreme Court of the Philippines

The people's freedom to criticize the government includes the right to criticize the courts, their proceedings and decisions... And to enhance the open court principle and allow the people to make fair and reasoned criticism of the courts, the sub judice rule excludes from its coverage fair and accurate reports (without comment) of what have actually taken place in open court.--Associate Justice Arturo Brion, Supreme Court of the Philippines