Gatchalian files cyber libel case vs. ex-Energy chief Cusi

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Thursday filed a cyber libel suit against former Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi over a statement posted on the Department of Energy's website on February 4, 2022.

Gatchalian accused Cusi's official statement of casting "malice" on his reputation and integrity as well as the Senate Committee on Energy's investigation, during the 18th Congress, into the issues surrounding the transfer of the 45% participating interest of Chevron Philippines in the Malampaya gas project.

The lawmaker argued that Cusi's statement was defamatory as it "characterizes the committee hearings as based solely on speculation and hearsay propagated by certain business interests."

“Cusi’s statement is clearly defamatory and obviously intended to cause dishonor, discredit, or contempt not merely of my position as a Senator of the Republic but more importantly of my integrity as a public servant,” Gatchalian said in a statement.

“A simple reading of Cusi’s statement shows that he characterizes the conduct of the Senate investigation as being tainted with bad faith for being highly irregular and politicized,” he added.

Further, Gatchalian argued that there was an actual malice because "from the very beginning, he (Cusi) knows that his statement is untruthful since he is aware that I or any of the members of the Senate Committee on Energy were never influenced by any business interest in the course of the Senate investigation."

“He never called my attention to my alleged involvement in whatever he was ranting about nor did he raise the issue, whether formally or informally, during the Senate investigation," he added.

Gatchalian said that Cusi should have filed a complaint against him before the Senate Ethics Committee or the Office of the Ombudsman if there was indeed a crime committed.

"Until the present, I have not received any formal complaint regarding this matter," he noted.

Cusi issued the statement on February 4 after a Senate resolution recommending the filing of lawsuits against him and other officials reached the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Senate resolution arose from the series of inquiries launched by Gatchalian, the upper chamber’s Energy panel chairman, who concluded in his privilege speech that Cusi and key officials of the DOE were “criminally and administratively liable for graft, gross neglect of duty, and grave misconduct and should immediately resign from their posts...for railroading the approval of the sale of participating interest of Chevron in Malampaya gas field.”

Other officials recommended to be charged were Energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos, officer-in-charge Undersecretary Roberto Uy, Assistant Secretary Leonido Pulido III, Assistant Secretary Gerardo Erguiza Jr., Director Cesar dela Fuente III, Director Arthur Tenazas, Director Araceli Soluta, OIC Assistant Director Guillermo Ansay, DOE Compliance Division chief Thelma Cerdeña, R.J.A Delos Santos, and Demujin Antiporda.

The then-Energy chief said that the committee hearings were “innuendoes, speculation, and hearsay propagated by certain business interests that dictated the course of the so-called ‘investigation.'"

“I find it unfortunate that the Malampaya issue has been politicized by those whose business interests must have been put in jeopardy as I stayed on course and performed my duties as Energy Secretary,” said Cusi.

Cusi claimed that in the course of the Committee hearings, Gatchalian had chosen to lend his ear to those adversarial business interests.

“It was obvious in these hearings that Senator Gatchalian has sought to undermine the DOE’s ability to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the proposal covering the said sale of shares,” he assailed.

In the 18th Congress, the Senate Energy panel’s series of inquiries looked into Davao-based tycoon Dennis Uy’s Malampaya Philippines Pte. Ltd. buyout in 2020 of Chevron Philippines’ 45% stake in the offshore gas field in Palawan. It has since been renamed UC MPPL or UC Malampaya.

Uy had said there was no transfer of rights or obligations that occurred in the Udenna-Chevron deal on the sale of Malampaya Consortium shares. — BM, GMA News