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THE Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG)
on Tuesday welcomed the decision of the Sandiganbayan upholding with
finality the claim of the government over the $8-million Swiss
account of former Marcos social secretary Fe Roa-Gimenez.
PCGG Commissioner for Legal
Affairs Narciso Nario said the decision by the antigraft body could
have a domino effect on all other cases that involve or include
Gimenez in local or international courts.
Nario said he would request a
special en banc meeting this week with PCGG Chairman Camilo Sabio to
prepare their next move.
“This case is much awaited and
the PCGG welcomes the decision. Now the government can move on to a
case pending before a court abroad. We can use the Fe Roa-Gimenez
case as evidence for other government claims over the ill-gotten
wealth of the Marcos family,” Nario said.
He also expressed confidence that
they would be able to get hold of the money soon. He said they would
file the necessary petitions to be able to immediately transfer the
funds to government coffers.
The $8 million of Gimenez is
deposited in the Adler Bank in Zurich.
The government had earlier
accused Gimenez and her husband Ignacio of being dummies for the
Marcoses and facilitating the transfer of millions of dollars into
foreign accounts.
Sometime in December last year,
the graft court forfeited the account, giving the government hope in
recovering the contested wealth.
Sabio had said the PCGG would
soon ask the Swiss authorities to turn over to the Philippine
government the $8 million.
--Francis Earl A. Cueto
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