Binays cleared in P1.3-B school ‘overprice’ case

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan has cleared former Vice President Jejomar “Jojo” Binay Sr. and his son Jejomar “Junjun” Binay Jr. of graft and falsification of public documents in connection with the alleged rigged contracts worth P1.3 billion for the construction of the Makati Science High School (MSHS) building that took place when they served as Makati City mayor.

The anti-graft court’s Special Fifth Division granted the demurrer to evidence separately filed last year by the Binays and their 16 co-accused, who were either contractors or Makati City Hall employees who handled the procurement, effectively junking the charges against them.

A demurrer to evidence is a motion to throw out the case based on insufficiency of evidence brought to the court by the prosecution. The granting of a demurrer results in an acquittal.

Flawed witnesses

Other respondents whose demurrer were admitted by the court were Marjorie De Veyra, Pio Kenneth Dasal, Lorenza Amores, Leonila Querijero, Efren Canlas, Julius Ramos, Nelia Barlis, Norman Flores, Giovanni Condes, Rodel Nayve, Ralph Liberato, Ulysses Orienza, Gerardo San Gabriel, Raydes Pestaño, Eleno Mendoza, and Virginia Garcia.

According to the 86-page resolution promulgated on Dec. 15 but made public only this week, the prosecution “utterly failed” to substantiate conspiracy, bad faith, gross inexcusable negligence, and manifest partiality in the school building project as alleged in the complaint.

It covers 13 charges from SB-18-CRM-0153 to 0165, or seven counts for violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act No. 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and six counts for falsification.

“All the purported key witnesses for the prosecution had a critical flaw: they lacked direct, firsthand knowledge of the truth regarding the charges against all of the accused,” read the resolution written by Associate Justice Rafael Lagos, who is also the division chair. It had the concurrence of Associate Justices Maryann Corpus-Mañalac and Kevin Vivero.

It continued: “As such, their testimonies hold no probative value and deserve scant consideration from this court.”

In fact, the Sandiganbayan noted, the prosecution’s principal witness “practically absolved them from any liability” for the alleged irregularities in the bidding processes.

No adverse findings

It also cited the absence of a separate examination by the Commission on Audit (COA) through audit memorandums or notice of disallowances, which “bolstered good faith on the part of the accused.”

“Throughout the construction of six phases of the 10-story MSHS building, not to mention the architectural and engineering services provided therefor, not one adverse finding from COA was issued,” the court pointed out.

It said that even the Office of the Ombudsman, who built the charges, “failed to render any report of overpricing” in the MSHS project.

On the issue of inflated contract prices, the antigraft court said that there was “no allegation, much less proof beyond reasonable doubt,” that the Makati City government could have gotten better rates from other contractors or bidders.

Various allegations

A plunder and graft complaint was filed in December 2014 against the Binays for the alleged overpriced construction of the 10-story MSHS building in Barangay Cembo (now part of Taguig).

In an 11-page complaint, a group called anticorruption advocates led by Renato Bondal, a former barangay captain and Binay ally, urged the Office of the Ombudsman to charge the Binays criminally for allegedly conspiring to defraud the government of Makati City of P862 million in the construction of the school building.

The complaint claimed that the project, which was built in six phases from 2007 to 2014, was originally estimated to only cost P470 million, but this ballooned to P1.3 billion.

In June 2015, a team of investigators from the Office of the Ombudsman recommended the filing of charges involving violations of antigraft and corrupt practices laws, falsification of public documents, violation of the code and ethical standards for public officials, violation of the procurement act, dishonesty and grave misconduct against Binay Sr. and his co-accused.

The investigators said the “bid and award of the contract for the construction, architectural, and engineering services for Makati Science High School were rigged and prearranged to favor Hilmarc’s Corp.”

In August 2017, former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales ordered the filing of criminal charges against the Binays for allegedly conspiring to rig the procurement of the 10-story school building.

Contractors

In two separate resolutions approved on Aug. 1, 2017, Morales indicted Binay Sr. with four counts of violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, as well as three counts of falsification of public documents. Binay Jr. was also set to face the same charges.

Based on the original complaints filed by the Office of Ombudsman’s field investigation office in June 2015, Infiniti Architectural Works bagged the P17.4-million contract for architecture and engineering services of the school, including a four-story dormitory, while Hilmarc’s got the P1.3-billion construction project.

The contract for the construction was broken down into six phases: P99.6 million for Phase 1; P174.5 million for Phase 2; P149.5 million for Phase 3; P394.1 million for Phase 4; 349.6 million for Phase 5, and P165.3 million for Phase 6.

In his demurrer, Binay Sr. asserted that he had “no direct participation in the bidding” of the school building and that he was only implicated for being the head of the procuring entity at the time.

His son, on the other hand, denied any conspiracy because his participation was “only limited to having approved the disbursement vouchers,” specifically for the approval of payment in Phases 4 to 6 of construction.

The elder Binay served as Makati mayor from 1988 to 1998 and from 2001 to 2010. He was succeeded by Junjun in 2010, who went on to hold the post until March 2015, when he was ordered suspended over supposed irregularities in the Makati parking building project, another controversy that resulted in the filing of separate charges.

—WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH

(2025/01/10-05:30)