Sandigan Orders Release Of Ex-DPWH Chief Bonoan; Not Guilty Plea Entered For Jinggoy

The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division has ordered the release of former public works secretary Manuel Bonoan from “hospital arrest” after he was excluded as an accused in the plunder and graft charges over P573 million worth of supposed kickbacks from flood control projects.

Fifth Division chairperson Zaldy Trespeses directed the Philippine National Police General Hospital to release Bonoan from its custody, as the arrest warrants against him have been recalled. 

The issuance of the order was sought in open court by Bonoan’s lawyer Stephanie Ong during the arraignment of the remaining defendants in the case, among them Sen. Jinggoy Estrada.

“Police Brigadier General Portia Manalad of the PNP Health Service General Hospital is hereby ordered to release from custody Manuel Manligas Bonoan, unless he is being detained for other lawful reason,” the order read.

With his release, Bonoan is on temporary liberty as he still faces a graft case before the anti-graft court’s Second Division, to which he has already posted bail.

One more night at PNPGH

Bonoan has to stay under the custody of the PNP for one more night even if the Sandiganbayan ordered his release.

PNP spokesman Col. Allen Rae Co said the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) already got a copy of the release order from the anti-graft court.

However, the CIDG still has to verify if Bonoan has outstanding warrants of arrest from other divisions of the Sandiganbayan.

“We can see from the order, the last sentence there, ‘unless being detained for any other lawful reason’ so our CIDG will be doing their due diligence,” Co told reporters in an interview.

With government offices already closed by 5 p.m., Co said the CIDG will do the verification at the start of office hours today.

Bonoan has been staying at the PNPGH where he is clinically stable and receiving maintenance medications for his ailments.

Co said that they will immediately release Bonoan from custody once they validate the former Cabinet official has no other pending warrants. “He will be a freed man. He can do whatever he wants,” Co said.

Sandigan enters ‘not guilty’ plea for Jinggoy

The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division has entered a “not guilty plea” for Senator Estrada after he refused to enter a plea for his plunder and graft cases over alleged P573 million worth of kickbacks from flood control projects. 

Estrada, who has been suffering knee pains, arrived on crutches at the Sandiganbayan, accompanied by personnel from the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), for his arraignment. 

During the arraignment, Estrada refused to enter a plea, prompting the anti-graft court to enter a “not guilty” plea for him, in accordance with Section 19(c) Rule 116 of the Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure.

Estrada’s lawyer Laurence Arroyo said the senator did not enter a plea as they intend to challenge the recent ruling that allowed the amendment of the information in the plunder case against him.

“It was his decision not to enter a plea,” he told reporters in a chance interview. 

The anti-graft court earlier granted the prosecution’s motion to amend the information and remove Bonoan as a co-accused in the plunder and graft cases.

“We are studying our options with respect to the order of the court. We will pursue our remedies against that amendment because there has been a substantial change in the theory of the government, which, in part, affects our overall defense strategy,” Arroyo said. 

The Sandiganbayan has also given Estrada’s camp 10 days to file an explanation why the lawmaker should not be preventively suspended after his lawyer asked for additional time to submit comment. The prosecution was then given five days to respond. 

After the hearing, Estrada said he would “exhaust all legal remedies” available to him regarding Bonoan’s exclusion from the accused. 

Asked on his general well-being, he said he was doing fine.

“I’m OK. According to my doctor, it’s up to me if I want the surgery on my left knee,” Estrada told reporters.

Estrada was brought to the Cardinal Santos Medical Center last week after being granted furlough to undergo a knee X-ray procedure due to persistent pain in both of his knees.

Orthopedic doctor Fernando Syquia said Estrada suffered a meniscus tear on his left knee on his way to the hospital. When asked to rate his level of pain then on a scale of 1 to 10, Estrada gave a 9.5. He was prescribed anti-inflammatory medication to help ease the pain in his left knee. – With an additional report from Emannuel Tupas