A Sandiganbayan justice called out Tarlac 3rd District Rep. Noel Rivera over his attire after the lawmaker appeared before the anti-graft court's Second Division wearing jeans and a T-shirt on Tuesday, 11 August.

Rivera appeared for his arraignment in one of nine graft cases stemming from an alleged conflict of interest involving his stake in a construction firm that received government contracts.

Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Geraldine Faith Econg admonished Rivera over his attire, saying it could be taken as a sign of disrespect toward the court.

Rivera apologized and acknowledged his lapse, saying he was unaware of the dress code for an accused appearing before the court.

The lawmaker remains out on bail after posting P90,000 for each graft count. His cases were raffled to different divisions of the Sandiganbayan.

Arraignment deferred

Apart from the issue over Rivera's attire, the Second Division took note of pending motions filed by his camp seeking to quash, suspend and consolidate his cases.

A motion to quash seeks the dismissal of a charge by challenging the information filed by prosecutors, while a motion for consolidation seeks to have related cases jointly heard before the court.

With the motions still pending, the Sandiganbayan reset Rivera's arraignment to 18 August to give the court time to resolve the pleadings before proceeding with his plea.

Rivera's other graft cases were raffled to different Sandiganbayan divisions, except the Third Division, which is currently handling cases involving former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Sen. Rodante Marcoleta.