Sandiganbayan acquits PSC chairman of graft charge | Tempo – The Nation s Fastest Growing Newspaper tempo.com.ph - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from tempo.com.ph Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Published December 22, 2020, 3:01 PM
Former Maasim Mayor Aniceto Lopez Jr. and Municipal Treasurer Moises Magallona Jr. of Sarangani province have been found guilty by the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division of illegal exaction for the illegal charging of sticker fees back in 2005.
Lopez Jr. and Magallona Jr. were convicted for violating Article 213, paragraph (2), sub-paragraph (a) of the Revised Penal Code on Illegal Exaction.
They were sentenced to suffer imprisonment of two years, four months and one day of prision correccional as minimum to eight years of prision mayor as maximum for each of their charges, with perpetual disqualification from holding any public office. They were also ordered to pay a fine of P6,000.
MANILA BULLETIN FILE
Chiong was accused of violating Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for giving undue advantage to Petronas Energy Philippines Inc. when he issued Mayor’s Permit No. RO1-484-2014 on April 7, 2014 in favor of Petronas despite its lack of the pre-requisite Fire Safety Inspection Certification from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP).
But in its 22-page ruling, the anti-graft court said that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of Chiong. For one thing, they weren’t able to prove that Chiong acted with evident bad faith, manifest partiality, or gross inexcusable negligence when he issued the mayor’s permit.