Court junks ill-gotten wealth raps vs Danding, Enrile, Marcos couple

The Sandiganbayan dismissed two ill-gotten wealth cases involving the late tycoon Eduardo Cojuangco Jr., Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile, the late President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., and former First Lady Imelda Marcos.

The court's decision followed the government’s withdrawal of the cases, citing ongoing negotiations for a compromise agreement and previous Supreme Court rulings.

In a 34-page decision dated December 6, the anti-graft court granted the government’s motion to withdraw Civil Case No. 0033-A and Civil Case No. 0033-F.

Civil Case No. 0033-A alleged that Cojuangco, in collusion with then-President Marcos, Imelda Marcos, and others, used the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) and the Coconut Consumers  Stabilization Fund (CCSF) to manipulate the acquisition of 72.2% of the  First United Bank (later converted to United Coconut Planters Bank) for personal gain.

Civil Case No. 0033-F accused Cojuangco and associates of misusing coconut levy funds to purchase two blocks of San  Miguel Corporation shares, violating the purposes for which the levy was collected.

The government argued that both cases had already been dismissed with finality by the Supreme Court, prompting its withdrawal of the remaining claims for damages.

The Sandiganbayan treated the government’s motion as a withdrawal under Section 2, Rule 17 of the Rules of Court.

“Plaintiff Republic clearly and unequivocally states that it will no longer pursue the claims for damages in these cases. It is a hornbook rule that it is not the caption of a pleading but the allegations thereat that determines its nature,” the court stated.

As no objections were raised during a July 2024 hearing, the court granted the withdrawal and dismissed the cases with prejudice.

However, Civil  Case No. 0033-A remains partially active due to an unresolved  Complaint-in-Intervention filed by Subic International Air Charter. The court allowed ongoing negotiations for a compromise agreement between Subic Air and the government.

Subic Air’s intervention in Civil Case No. 0033-A seeks to protect its rights or interests potentially affected by the proceedings. The Sandiganbayan emphasized its commitment to allowing the parties an opportunity to settle the matter.

“In the interest of substantial justice, this Court shall allow the parties the opportunity to amicably settle Subic Air's intervention in Civil Case No. 0033-A,”  the ruling noted.

Civil Case No. 0033-F was fully dismissed with prejudice. — DVM, GMA Integrated News