
Sandiganbayan finds Ruffy Biazon guilty of graft
As a result, the anti-graft court sentenced Biazon to six to 10 years in jail.
Sandiganbayan, however, cleared Biazon of malversation raps in the same pork barrel case.
Biazon, meanwhile, has said that he will appeal the ruling.
'Public service should not be derailed by noise or distraction. My commitment to Muntinlupeños stands firm—a city led with compassion, guided by vision, and focused on real solutions," Biazon said in a statement.
Biazon's camp also said that the Sandiganbayan verdict does not impact his current position as mayor.
"The governance will continue with the same integrity and resolve that has marked his leadership since day one. This is not the end—it's the beginning of a renewed push for deeper, more inclusive public service,' Biazon's camp said. —VAL, GMA Integrated News

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


GMA Network
2 days ago
- GMA Network
Sandiganbayan asserts jurisdiction in Pharmally case
The Sandiganbayan has issued a Resolution stating that it has jurisdiction over the three counts of graft cases worth over P4 billion involving Phamally and the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM). In the 43-page Resolution, the anti-graft court said the Malolos Bulacan RTC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in junking the three graft charges which should have been filed before the Sandiganbayan. These graft cases involve P4.16 billion of the following government purchases amid COVID-19 pandemic: P2.877 billion worth of 41,400 Units of BGI Real Time Fluorescen RT-PCR Kits P600 million worth of 8,000 Units of PCR Kit, BGI Real Time Fluorescent Kit P688 million worth of 2,000 Units of A*Star Foundation Kit 2.0 'After a careful review of the records and issues in these cases, this court finds no grave abuse of discretion that can be attributed to the public respondent who issued subject Orders [dismissing the graft charges],' the Sandiganbayan said. 'The issuance by RTC-Malolos of subject Orders did not breach the line of grave abuse of discretion. Rather, it correctly held that RA No. 10660 does not require that damage must be an element of the crime for the Sandiganbayan to take cognizance of the cases,' the Sandiganbayan added. The Department of Budget and Management officials accused in the case include: Christopher Lao Warren Liong Christine Suntay Augusto Ylagan Jasonmer Uayan Webster Laurenana and Paul Jasper Villanueva De Guzman On the other hand, Pharmally officials among the accused include: Twinkle Dargani Mohit Dargani Linconn Uy Ong Justine Garado, Huang Tzu Yen Krizle Grace Ukkong Mago and Lin Weixiong. The Sandiganbayan also said that the Malolos RTC 'correctly held that the amounts involved are not mere incidents of the recital of the material facts of the cases but are illustrative of the gravity of the offense charged against the accused-respondents and of the damage caused to the government.' 'Hence, petitioner's bid to invalidate subject Orders must fail. Wherefore, the Petition for Certiorari filed by the Office of the Special Prosecutor [under the Office of the Ombudsman] is denied. Insofar as the three [graft] Informations are concerned, it is declared that it is the Sandiganbayan which has jurisdiction over the crimes charged,' the Sandiganbayan said. —VAL, GMA Integrated News


GMA Network
3 days ago
- GMA Network
Marcos state visit to India set next week
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. will embark on a five-day state visit to the Republic of India next week. The visit is scheduled from August 4 to 8, upon the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His first stop will be in New Delhi, and he will proceed to Bangalore for official meetings and events. The President will also meet with the business sector in both cities. Aside from that, Marcos will have a meet and greet activity with the Filipino Community in New Delhi. The Philippines and India are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations in 2025. — VDV, GMA Integrated News


GMA Network
3 days ago
- GMA Network
Ex-Palawan gov Reyes guilty of Malampaya fund mess —Sandiganbayan
The Sandiganbayan has found former Palawan governor Mario Joel Reyes and his provincial planning and development coordinator Samuel Madamba II guilty of 11 counts of graft in connection with misuse of some P1.53 billion in royalties from the Malampaya gas field in 2009. In a 625-page decision, the anti-graft court sentenced Reyes and Madamba to six to 10 years in prison per graft conviction or a total of at least 66 years of jail time. The P1.53 billion worth of Malampaya gas field royalties were allegedly spent on school buildings, the San Vicente Airport Development Project, road projects, solar home system, and a day care center. "There is manifest partiality when accused Reyes, as HoPE (Head of Procuring Entity), improperly evaluated the bid proposals, leading to the award of numerous or overlapping contracts to a single contractor with one set of key personnel," the anti-graft court said. "Accused Reyes approved contracts that awarded multiple projects to a single contractor while being fully aware that these projects required the contractor's presence at specific times that conflicted with other projects. This act indicates a clear, notorious, or plain inclination or predilection to favor one side or one person rather than another, which the Anti-Graft Law categorizes and punishes as manifest partiality," it added. Based on documentary evidence presented before them, including the contracts awarded to the same contractor for overlapping projects and the Commission on Audit report, the Sandiganbayan ruled that there was "a clear violation of contractual obligations." "For one, it is logically impossible for the same key personnel to be involved in all these projects at once, given their different locations which are far apart from each other. Although the towns and areas belong to only one province (Palawan), the Court takes judicial notice that these towns are not really geographically located in one single island," it said. "Additionally, the contractors failed to update or submit revised lists of key personnel for the overlapping projects," the anti-graft court said. The Sandiganbayan also said that Reyes and Madamba, who was then BAC secretary, failed to publicly post the bidding for the subject government contracts due to "neglect and utter lack of effort." While Reyes posted bail in these cases, the court said the ex-Palawan governor failed to appear or present any evidence to dispute the evidence presented by the prosecution. "His (Reyes) failure to be present and adduce evidence could indeed be considered as a waiver of his constitutional right to defend himself and confront the witnesses against him," the Sandiganbayan said. Madamba, for his part, defended himself by arguing that he only failed to properly register the invitation to bid on the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) because of a former contractual employee's failure to provide a password and to the poor internet connection in Palawan before 2010. The Sandiganbayan, however, says this defense rings hollow absent evidence. "Not a shred of evidence was offered to prove these allegations. Thus, the basic rule applies that, a mere allegation is not evidence and is not equivalent to proof," it said. "Besides, there were available alternative options provided by the Government Procurement Policy Board to ensure mandatory posting, such as contacting the PhilGEPS division for assistance, fax the documents for posting, or utilizing internet cafes. This noncompliance with these posting requirements led to limited participation in the bidding process, as evidenced by the COA Audit Report which showed only one bidder for 65 projects and two bidders for 139 projects," it added. —AOL, GMA Integrated News