Cusi camp hits Ombudsman reversal on Malampaya case

The camp of former Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi on Saturday pushed back against the Ombudsman’s decision to indict him and other Department of Energy officials over the 2019 Malampaya gas deal, stressing that the case had earlier been dismissed.

PDP deputy spokesperson Ferdinand Topacio said the reversal of the ruling was already being questioned before the Supreme Court.

“The reversal of the resolution last year is now the subject of certiorari proceedings before the Supreme Court, and out of respect to that institution and the principle of sub judice, we will not comment further on the merits thereof,” Topacio said.

He noted that the Ombudsman previously found no evidence of wrongdoing on Cusi’s part. PDP, chaired by former president Rodrigo Duterte, also stood firmly behind Cusi, reiterating its “faith and confidence in his leadership” during what it described as “trying times.”

Cusi, who served as DOE chief under Duterte, has consistently denied allegations of irregularities in the transaction, which transferred Chevron’s 45 percent stake in the Malampaya gas project to Dennis Uy’s Udenna Corporation. Udenna later acquired another 45 percent from Shell, giving Uy control over 90 percent of the country’s largest natural gas field.

But not all welcomed the Ombudsman’s decision reversal of its earlier ruling.

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, who led the Senate probe into the deal as energy committee chair, welcomed the indictment, saying it validated his earlier warnings that “the transaction was marred by serious irregularities and failed to protect the best interests of the Filipino people.”

Located off the coast of Palawan, the Malampaya gas field supplies up to 20 percent of Luzon’s electricity needs and has long been regarded as a strategic energy lifeline for the country.