Considering the defects presented in almost all of the pieces of evidence that were submitted by the Republic, this Court finds that it has failed to discharge its burden.

The anti-graft court has dismissed a P267.37 million civil case against the late President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda, the third ill-gotten wealth complaint filed by the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) to be junked this year due to defects in evidence presented.

In a resolution promulgated on 14 October, the Sandiganbayan Fourth Division granted the demurrer to evidence filed by Ignacio and Fe Roa Gimenez, who are alleged business associates of the Marcoses.

“Considering the defects presented in almost all of the pieces of evidence that were submitted by the Republic, this Court finds that it has failed to discharge its burden and so rules that the respective demurrers of the spouses Gimenez should be granted,” the resolution penned by Associate Justice Alex Quiroz stated.

In all, three PCGG high-profile suits against the Marcoses were dismissed this year. The two others were the P102 billion case involving Marcos business associate Roberto Benedicto in August and the P1 billion case involving Bienvenido Tantoco in September.

The Gimenez spouses were accused of conniving with the Marcoses in misappropriating public funds through theft, extortion, bribery and other acts of corruption.

They were also accused of acting as conduits of the Marcoses in purchasing expensive works of art, as well as properties in New York such as the Crown Building and the Lindenmere Estate.

In their demurrer, the Gimenez spouses asked the Court to dismiss the case against them arguing that most of the pieces of evidence shown are mere photocopies, which are of poor quality, in violation of Rule 130, Section 3 of the Rules of Court, known as the “best evidence rule.” It mandates that original documents must be produced whenever its contents are the subject of inquiry.

The spouses also argued that the evidence presented by the PCGG has no basis and is mere hearsay because the affiants were never presented at the witness stand to testify about its contents.

In its ruling, the Court said it finds the violation of the best evidence rule by the PCGG to be “fatal” to the Republic’s cause.

“Absent a clear showing that the original of these exhibits have been lost, destroyed or cannot be produced in court, the Republic’s photocopied exhibits must be disregarded, being unworthy of any probative value,” the ruling stated.

Through a previous Supreme Court ruling, the Sandiganbayan reminded the PCGG that public prosecutors should employ and use all government resources efficiently and economically to avoid wastage of public funds and revenues.

“They should perform and discharge their duties with the highest degree of excellence, professionalism, intelligence and skill,” it added.

The PCGG tried to prove the Gimenez couple acquired assets with a total value of P93.8 million although declaring a total net income of only P955,273.71 from 1981 to 1985.

It also accused the pair of obtaining construction contracts through corporations they put up such as the New City Builders Inc. in undertaking projects like the construction of the University of Life Sports Complex and dining hall and those for the National Manpower Corp., Human Settlements Commission, Government Service Insurance Service and Maharlika Livelihood.

Likewise, the complaint also asserted that the defendants illegally acquired wealth, consisting of real property in various provinces, motor vehicles, money placements, bank deposits, shares of stock in Guaranteed Education Inc., Acoje Mining Corp., Baguio Gold Mining, Marinduque Mining and Industrial Corp., The Energy Corp., Basic Petroleum & Minerals Inc., Landoil Resources Corp., Lepanto Consolidated Mining Co., Multi-National Resources, Oriental Petroleum & Minerals Corp., Philippine Overseas and Telecommunication Corp., Pioneer Natural Resources, Sabena Mining Corp., San Jose Oil Inc., White Eagle Overseas and Oil, Apex Mining Corp., Atlas Consolidated Mining, Canlubang Golf and Country Club, J.B. Gimenez Securities Inc., New City Builders Inc., Pyro Control Technology Corp., Transnational Products Inc., Allied Leasing and Finance Corp., Allied Banking Corp. and Manila Stock Exchange.

The anti-graft court also said some of the photocopied exhibits that were submitted by government are so poor in quality that the letters and numbers stated therein are already unreadable, making it impossible for the court to discern the points raised by the government.

“Consequently, even if the defects of these exhibits were disregarded, little or no probative value can be accorded to them,” the Sandiganbayan added.