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By Anthony Vargas, Reporter
DEFENSE and military officials on
Wednesday steered clear of the controversy involving a retired army
general who is offering P20 million from the wealth he allegedly
amassed in exchange for the dropping of charges against him.
In a plea-bargain offer, former
military comptroller Jacinto Ligot wants to surrender part of his
assets if the charges against him and his family are withdrawn.
Ligot, who retired as a
lieutenant general, is facing graft charges before the Sandiganbayan
for not listing P139 million in his statement of assets and
liabilities and net worth (SALN).
Defense Secretary Hermo-genes
Ebdane Jr., Ligot’s classmate at the Philippine Military Academy,
said the move could be a legal maneuver of Ligot’s lawyer.
“I’m not in a position to say
whether it is acceptable or not,” Ebdane told reporters.
The Armed Forces Public
Information chief, Lt. Colonel Bartolome Bacarro, refused comment,
saying the military no longer has a hold on the retired general.
After Ligot retired in August
2004, news of his alleged ill-gotten wealth quickly spread and put
the military under heavy criticism.
Newsbreak Magazine reported that
Ligot owns two houses in California worth $700,000, and a
condominium unit in Fort Bonifacio worth P22 million, among other
properties.
Ligot allegedly acquired the
properties while he was still in the military but did not include in
his SALN.
The Office of the Ombudsman
charged Ligot before the Sandiganbayan in 2005.
Retired major general Carlos F.
Garcia, who is also facing a P300-million graft case before the
Sandiganbayan, succeeded Ligot as comptroller.
In December 2005 a military
tribunal sentenced Garcia to two years hard labor and dishonorably
dismissed him.
Legal experts in the House of
Representatives on Wednesday are worried that the plea bargain
offers of Ligot and Charlie “Atong” Ang could set a precedent.
While a plea bargain facilitates
a trial and the forfeiture of illegally amassed wealth, such hastily
rendered decisions may defeat the purpose of punitive sanctions
against those accused of graft, Representatives Salacnib Baterina of
Ilocos Sur and Marcelino Libanan of Eastern Samar said.
Citizen’s Battle against
Corruption Rep. Joel Villanueva also believes that the cases of
Atong Ang and Ligot “encourage corruption at a grand scale.”
“It appears they’re are
sending a bad message that you can steal from the government as long
as you make sure its big enough to be able to strike a deal with
government and still leave some for you,” Villanueva said.
The plea bargain, according to
Baterina, is a legitimate legal maneuver and acceptable under any
justice system. But he said it should not be taken as an easy way
out by grafters.
“The courts must exercise extra
caution in rendering a decision on plea bargain offered by any
accused. They should give weight to the gravity of the offense
committed by the accused,” Baterina said.
Libanan shared a similar view, as
he cautioned the plea bargain remedy if abused, would possibly allow
grafters walk free and do the crime all over again, and therefore
could send wrong signals to others.
--With Maricel V. Cruz
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