Celeb Scoop page 27
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August 2015 / Fortnightly
Volume 6 - Number 16
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‘FOR UNDECLARED ASSETS IN SALN’
SANDIGANBAYAN FINDS CAUSE TO PUT CORONA ON TRIAL FOR PERJURY A special division of the antigraft court Sandiganbayan has found probable cause to put former Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona on trial for perjury over his alleged failure to declare some his assets in his Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN). Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang said the antigraft court’s Special Third Division has voted 4-1 to junk Corona’s motion for judicial determination of probable cause filed before the court in April 2014. Through the motion, Corona questioned the sufficiency of the evidence presented against him. “There is probable cause that he has committed the crime,” Tang told reporters in a chance interview at the sidelines of the hearing on the proposed 2016 budget of the judiciary before the House of Representatives’ committee on appropriations. “My recollection is that there are certain properties that he failed to include in his SALN for a number
of years based on the documents submitted,” Tang added. GMA News Online is getting Corona’s comment as of posting time. A copy of the court’s ruling is set to be released to the media on Friday, Third Division clerk of court Atty. Dennis Pulma said. Aside from Tang, other members of the Special Third Division who voted in favor of holding Corona on trial were Associate Justices Jose Hernandez, Alex Quiroz and Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta. Meanwhile, Associate Justice Samuel Martires dissented. In a portion of his dissenting opinion, Martires said the “there was no legal basis for the filing of charges against the accused Corona” as his alleged act was not tantamount to perjury under the Revised Penal Code nor under the Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. Martires also said that “the Ombudsman was devoid of authority to file these cases against the accused Corona.”
Untruthful declarations. Corona is facing before the Sandiganbayan Special Third Division eight counts of perjury under Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code and eight counts of violation of Section 8 of RA 6713 both in connection with his alleged untruthful declarations in his SALNs. Based on the complaint of the Office of the Ombudsman filed with
the Sandiganbayan in April last year, Corona misdeclared his and his wife’s assets in his SALNs from 2001 to 2011. For instance, the Ombudsman said that from 2001 to 2011, Corona has a total legitimate earnings of P30.37 million in his tenure as a legal officer in the Office of the President (2001), Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (2002 to 2011),
a member of the Senate Electoral Tribunal (2008 to 2009) and the House Electoral Tribunal (2009 to 2010), yet Corona, in his SALN for 2001 has only declared a net worth of P13.97 million which only grew by about P8 million over the next ten years as he has only declared a total net worth of P22.94 million in his 2011 SALN. Continue to page 2