THE Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday filed graft charges against former finance minister Roberto Ongpin and former high-ranking officials of the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) in connection with the P660-million loan granted to the former.

Named in the charge sheet filed before the Sandiganbayan were Ongpin, former DBP chairman Patricia Sto. Tomas, vice chairman Reynaldo David and directors Alexander Magno, Floro Oliveros, Miguel Romero, Franklin Velarde, Joseph Donato Pangilinan, Edgardo Garcia, Armando Samia, Rolando Geronimo, Perla Soleta, Jesus Guevarra 2nd, Crescencia Bundoc, Arturo Baliton, Nelson Macatlang and Marissa Cayetano. They were indicted for the grant of P150 million credit line to Ongpin’s Delta Ventures Resources Inc. (DVRI).

Private individuals Josephine Manalo, DVRI president; and Ma. Lourdes Torres, treasurer of Goldenmedia Corp., were also charged.

Another set of graft complaints were slapped against Sto. Tomas, David, Magno, Oliveros, Romero, Velarde, Velasco, Garcia, Samia, Geronimo, Soleta, Guevarra, Bundoc, Baliton, Ongpin, Manalo, Torres, along with Ramon Durano 4th, Benedicto Ernesto Bitonio Jr., Teresita Tolentino, Rodolfo Cerezo and Warren de Guzman, over the second loan worth P510 million.

The Office of the Ombudsman said that the loans granted were behest, since DVRI was undercapitalized. It added that project subject of the loans was also not legally feasible and the accused resorted to corporate layering.

The Ombudsman cited the extraordinary speed with which the loans were processed, adding that Ongpin was a crony of David, who was one of those who approved the loans.

The case stemmed from the complaint filed in August 2011 by DBP Chairman Jose Nuñez and President Francisco del Rosario Jr. against the 28 respondents who were accused of granting the questionable loan, which was used to purchase DBP-owned shares in Philex Mining Corp.

Ongpin fights back
Hours before the Ombudsman filed the complaint, Ongpin filed a criminal complaint against Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) deputy gov. Nestor Espenilla Jr., who he said should be held liable for reversing his position on the P660-million loan.

The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee initiated its own investigation, where Espenilla said that the sale of Development Bank’s 50 million shares was permissible.

“Espenilla acknowledged under oath that from the point of view of the BSP as the regulator of banks, the sale of DBP’s 50 million Philex shares to Goldenmedia Corporation . . . was a ‘prudent’ and ‘positive’ transaction that resulted in ‘trading gains’ for the bank,” Ongpin said in his complaint.

But in November 2012, Ongpin said that Espenilla, together with Commissioners Teresita Herbosa of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Emmanuel Dooc of the Insurance commission as part of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, issued a resolution that found the loan transaction irregular.

They asked the Court of Appeals to freeze the assets of Ongpin, his companies, and other Development Bank officers who processed the loans.

The appellate court granted the petition.

Ongpin said that the freeze order was to blame for the value of the stock to “drop like a rock” across-the-board.