Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. unit Cavitex Infrastructure Corp. (CIC) filed yesterday criminal cases against the state-owned Public Estates Authority Tollway Corporation (PEATC) officer-in-charge Dioscoro Esteban before the Ombudsman.

Metro Pacific Tollways Corp. (MPTC) is a member of the Manuel V. Pangilinan group of companies.

CIC’s complaint cited perjury, slander, usurpation of authority and violation of the anti-graft law against Esteban.

Esteban earlier filed a petition for mandamus with the Court of Appeals and his public statements attacking CIC.

CIC’s action seeks to make Esteban, a public officer, accountable for his act of misrepresenting the PEATC in filing the petition for mandamus against CIC.

The mandamus petition was for the CA to order the return of the Manila–Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX) to the government.

Esteban stated under oath that he is the duly authorized representative of PEATC, despite his lack of any board authority.

Further, he has made various public statements besmirching CIC’s reputation.

According to CIC’s complaint, PEATC does not have a board of directors but OIC Esteban misrepresented the fact of his authority to file the mandamus case when he swore under oath in his petition that he is legally authorized by PEATC to file the case.

He also filed the petition through private lawyers, which is a gross violation of the rules of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (the legitimate lawyers for GOCCs like PEATC), and against the issuances of the Office of the President.

"The statements he made in public against CIC made false accusations of crimes and defects and therefore dishonored the reputation of CIC," said CIC’s Atty. Criselda Funelas, the complainant in the Ombudsman case.