Two former top officials of the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) have posted bail after being charged with graft by the Office of the Ombudsman in connection with a controversial P2 billion vessel monitoring system (VMS) project.

Former DA Undersecretary for Fisheries and BFAR national director Eduardo Gongona and former BFAR national director Demosthenes R. Escoto each posted P360,000 bail at the Antipolo City Regional Trial Court (RTC).

Their arraignment is set for 22 January followed by a pre-trial hearing on 26 February.

Gongona and Escoto face four counts of graft for allegedly improperly awarding the VMS contract to a British firm, SRT Marine Systems Solutions Ltd.

Meantime, Simon Tucker, CEO of the British company, is also a co-accused.

The charges stemmed from a complaint filed by Atty. James Mier Victoriano alleging violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and the Government Procurement Reform Act. The Ombudsman dismissed charges against other officials for lack of evidence.

Records show that the VMS project, initially budgeted at P1.6 billion under a French government loan, required bidders to either be French or part of a joint venture with a French entity.

SRT-France, a subsidiary of SRT-UK, won the bid in 2017 but was later disqualified by the French government due to its British ownership and lack of operational facilities in France. Consequently, the loan agreement collapsed.

In 2018, local funding raised the project budget to P2.09 billion, and SRT-UK was awarded the contract. By then, the project’s scope had expanded to include 5,000 VMS transceivers for commercial vessels and satellite service subscriptions, significantly increasing the government’s obligations.

In its 5 February 2024 resolution, the Ombudsman ruled that Gongona, Escoto and Tucker conspired to award the contract to SRT-UK in a manner disadvantageous to the government. The officials were found to have given unwarranted benefits to SRT-UK, violating Sections 3(e) and 3(j) of RA 3019.

“They orchestrated a series of questionable events which culminated in the award of a very favorable contract to SRT-UK,” the Ombudsman said.

The Ombudsman upheld its February 2024 ruling by denying the motions for reconsideration filed by the respondents in an order signed by Ombudsman Samuel Martires in October 2024.

Escoto has already been dismissed from government service by the Ombudsman for grave misconduct related to the VMS project. He also faced contempt of court charges for implementing a fisheries administrative order that was later declared unconstitutional.