*lalaga.
Business Insight
Monday, APril 1, 2019
t2 ffif".rs Insight i
Lanao del Norte Rep. Dimaporo
walks on graft, malversation raps
BY PETER TAEIIIGO
THE Sandiganbayan has cleated
Lanao del Norte Rep. Abdullah
Dimaporo of one couht each of
graft and malversation of public
funds through falsificatiin of
pubJic documents due to lack of
evidence.
In a 25-page decision dited
March 28, 2019, the anti-graft
courr's Second Division sranted
the defendant's demutrerio evi-
dence io which he challeneed rhe
sufficiency of the ptosec"ution's
evidence to support ia allegarions
that he defrauded the so\,ne;ment
of P5 million iorcnded is ,."i.t r'..
to famers in his legislatir,ne distdcr
Based on the cases filedli,2012.
the Office of the Ombudsman
accused Dimaporo of conspiring
wrth hve co-defendauts in the sup-
posed ghost delivery of fertilizers
valued at P5 million in 2004.
Prosecutors said the money
was released to a non-gooarrr-ani
otganizttron identified as the
Lanao Foundation Inc. (I-FL) in
coospiracy with former provincial
agricultudst Isabelo Luna and
private defendants LFI presidenr
Felizardo Dragon, program officer
Evangeline Ontiveros, internal
auditor Rosalinda Bisenio, and
executivC director Elmer Sayre.
LFI was supposed to have used
tie sum ro putchase 10,000 bags
of Saka Organic Fertilizer for dis-
tribution to farmen in the second
congressional disttict of Lanao
del_Norte. However, investigators
sard there rras no acrual delivetv ot
distribution,
'In bis demurrer to evidence,
the lauzmaker highlighted the
" PAqe
Jl:ws
testimonyof sate auditor Edwin
Canios that a random irrterview
of 22 fatnet-beteficiaries from
Dimapcro's district revealed that
all received the ferilizer from LFI.
The same wimess told the court
that Dimaporo was not even
mqrtiooB{in the Commission on
Audit's special report coverinq t}re
P728 million Fertilizer Funds ftom
dre Depanrnent of Agricutture.
In acquitting Dimaporo, the
Sandigaobayan noted that the
prosecution did not present the
inspection and financial status
reports tharwete al.legedly falsified
by Dimaporo.
"The falsity of dre acceptance
repoits and the distdbution Iist
of farmer beneficiades was also
not esablished. No vritness was
piesented to prove that accused
Dimaporo falsifi ed documents,,,
*Bstl
Monday, April 1, 2019
the court pointed out.
Oo the allegation of undue
injury to the gov€inment, the
Sandiganbayan noted the state-
ment of the DA that the LFI had
demorximted its capability to
urrdertake the prognm despite low
total equiry,
"The failute of *re prosecution
to prove all the elements of the
crime of malversatioo of public
funds through falsification of
pubiic documents cast reasotrable
doubt on the guilt.of accused
Dimaporo. Consistejnt widi the
constitutional presumption
of in-
nocence, tle Court rirust acquit the
accused," the court added.
Associate Justice Mchael Fred-
erick Musngi penned the ruling
concured in by Associate Justices
Oscat C. Herrera Jr and l-orifel L.
Pahimna.