Herbert Bautista, aide convicted of graft in P32.1-M IT deal

The Sandiganbayan on Monday convicted former Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista of graft, accusing him of colluding with his aide to defraud the government of P32.1 million for the procurement of an online occupational permitting and tracking system (OOPTS) in 2019.

The former actor-turned-politician was sentenced to up to 10 years in prison, along with ex-Quezon City Administrator Aldrin Cuña, who was also convicted on the same charge. The two were perpetually disqualified from holding public office.

The court, however, did not order Bautista and Cuña to pay the civil liability or the fine of P32,107,912.50 — equivalent to the sum embezzled — since it had already been received in full by the private party, which is not a party to the case.

Graft investigators said Bautista and Cuña were in cahoots to award the contract to Geodata Solutions Inc. for an OOPTS totaling P32.1 million despite the absence of a specific appropriation ordinance enacted by the Sangguniang Panglungsod.

Lawyer John Thomas Alferos III, appointed as the Sangguniang Panglungsod secretary in 2017, testified to the lack of a legislative measure for the OOPTS. He claimed that while the “source of funds is placed in the annual appropriation ordinance, a particular project is not.”

Court records showed that Bautista and Cuña rushed the release of the payment to Geodata, despite the delivery not yet being made. The payment was released two days before the terms of both accused expired in June 2019. Bautista served as Quezon City mayor from July 2010 to June 2019.

According to the court, such an action constitutes “corrupt intent, dishonest design, or some unethical interest.”

“In less than 24 hours, Disbursement Voucher No. 2019-06-907433 was processed by three different departments, and a check for payment was already prepared. This was remarkable because the transmittal of a document from one office to another department would typically take one business day,” the decision reads.

Investigation revealed that Geodata could not make the system fully accessible online in 2019 at the time of payment. It was only in 2021 that the online system was publicly launched and became fully operational.

“The respective acts of the accused in the approval of payment, and also in the release of a check in favor of Geodata without complete delivery of the project, constitutes unwarranted benefit, advantage, or preference,” the court said.

Bautista denied any irregularity in the bidding procedure and project implementation. He asserted that he was not part of the bids and awards committee, which executed the public bidding and declared Geodata the winning bidder. He claimed his only role was to sign his approval of the BAC resolution recommending the award to Geodata.

The Sandiganbayan, however, countered that Bautista could not feign ignorance because it was his responsibility to carefully review the supporting documents.

“Accused Bautista nonetheless maintains that he placed complete trust in the competency of his subordinates, so much so that he simply relied on the certifications and reports they issued before approving payment to the supplier. He thus invokes the Arias doctrine to exculpate himself from the charge,” the court stated.

As for Cuña, the Sandiganbayan said he was also liable for failing to exercise his duty by examining the documents, considering that he was the final signatory before a check would be issued to Geodata.

Aside from this case, Bautista and Cuña are also facing another graft case before the Sandiganbayan over the irregularities in the payment of P25.342 million to Cygnet Energy Power Asia Inc. for the installation of a solar power system and waterproofing works at one of Quezon City's buildings, also in 2019.