The Sandiganbayan has dismissed former Quezon City mayor Herbert Bautista's request to junk a graft complaint against him which stemmed from an allegedly anomalous solar power system and waterproofing project for P25.342 million in 2019.
The court's Third Division found no merit in Bautista's argument that the Office of the Ombudsman breached his constitutional right to a timely determination of the case against him in its 18-page resolution issued yesterday.
Bautista has been charged with breaching Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019, often known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
The court also mentioned the government's lockdowns during the height of the COVID outbreak, which could have hampered the ombudsman's probe.
Also, Sandiganbayan ruled that the other allegations Bautista made, such as his lack of ill faith in sanctioning the project's payment and the lack of irregularities in the bidding and procurement procedures, are "best suited for a full-fledged trial."
Associate Justice Bernelito Fernandez drafted the resolution, which was approved by Associate Justice Ronald Moreno, the Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice, and Third Division chairwoman Amparo Cabotaje-Tang.
The issue, which was heard by the Ombudsman on March 15, arose from the payment of P25.342 million to Cygnet Energy Power Asia Inc. for the construction of a solar power system and waterproofing works at the Civic Center Building of the city hall.
According to the ombudsman, Bautista accepted Cygnet's entire payment despite the company's failure to apply for and secure a net metering system from Manila Electric Co., which was a need for the project.
The payment was released, according to the ombudsman, based solely on an undated certificate of approval supplied by Bautista's co-accused, former city administrator Aldrin Cuña.
Bautista approved the payment to Cygnet on June 27, 2019, three days before stepping down as mayor after three mandates.
