Ex-Ilocos Norte town mayor gets 8 years for graft
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 12/11/2008 3:03 PM
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The former mayor of of Bacarra, Ilocos Norte is facing a six to eight-year prison term after being convicted of graft by the Sandiganbayan Third Division Wednesday.
Based on the nine-page verdict penned by Associate Justice Norberto Y. Geraldez, the graft court found Pacifico C. Velasco guilty of giving undue advantage to Bacarra Zanjera/Irrigators Multi-Purpose Cooperative when he turned over to the latter the operation and management of a P3.33 million rice mill purchased by the municipal government in 1998.
Aside from the jailterm, the graft court also banned the defendant from holding any public officie in the future.
The court said Velasco’s act was illegal because he failed to secure the approval of the Sangguniang Bayan of Bacarra.
Likewise the court noted that Velasco chose Zanjera out of 32 cooperatives existing in the municipality since he owned 520 shares in the said cooperative.
In his testimony, Velasco also admitted that his son, Michael B. Velasco, was the manager of Zanjera at the time of the turnover.
He claimed his action did not require the permission of the municipal board as no cash was turned over to the farmer’s cooperative.
But the court overruled the defendant’s argument citing Section 22 (c) Book 1 of the Local Government Code which barred local executives from binding the local government unit in any contract ‘without prior authoritzation from the Sanggunian concerned.’
“As local chief executive, accused Velasco ought to know the law and he was duty bound to obey the same. Accused Velasco failed to comply with the law, and, considering his position, was grossly and inexcusably negligent,” the court said.
