The Sandiganbayan has lifted the hold departure order (HDO) against ex-Department of Tourism (DoT) secretary Joseph Felix Mari Durano and five others who were earlier charged with graft over the purported irregularities in the P2.7-million wall calendar project in 2009.

The decision follows the Supreme Court (SC) ruling in January, acquitting Durano along with his co-accused, Eduardo Jarque Jr., Oscar Palabyab, Grace Yoro, Evelyn Cajigal and Adriana Flor for “failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.”

The six were sued for allegedly violating Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) for giving “unwarranted benefits and advantages” to PDP Digital Inc. for the “conceptualization and development” of the DoT’s wall calendars project worth P2.7 million.

Palabyab was then the agency’s undersecretary and chairperson of the Bids and Awards Committee. Yoro, meanwhile, was the erstwhile BAC director of financial services; and Jarque, Cajigal, and Flor were all members. 

The prosecution said the former Tourism officials were in cahoots by resorting to direct contracting instead of undergoing mandatory public bidding.

In acquitting the six accused, the SC said the prosecution fell short of substantiating its claim by failing to present that the subject deal was overpriced.

“All told, there is no proof beyond reasonable doubt of the facts and circumstances evincing corrupt intent on the part of Durano et al. Thus, this court is constrained to rule that the elements of the crime charged were not proven beyond reasonable doubt,” said the SC, adding that the verdict was final and executory. 

In compliance with the SC ruling, the Sandiganbayan granted the plea of the six to lift the hold departure against them as well as the release of their respective bail bonds.

“As all the accused in this case have already been acquitted... the release of their cash bond and the lifting of the hold departure order should now follow as a matter of course,” the Sandiganbayan said.