CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRY ON MAJOR GEN. CARLOS GARCIA CASE AND OTHER CASES OF AFP GRAFT AND CORRUPTION
On October 11, 2004, the House of Representatives Committee on National Defense commenced an investigation in aid of legislation on corruption in the AFP. The probe uncovered several issues that may be directly addressed by legislation, such as the inaction of the AFP leadership in conducting a proactive investigation of one of their own, irregularities in the procurement process, and conversion, the institutionalized practice of converting funds from an authorized use to an unauthorized use, which has come to be the largest source of corruption in the AFP.
While the cases against Mgen. Garcia are now being prosecuted and tried in the proper fora, the recent House Committee hearings have unearthed issues bigger than any one personality, presenting a sizeable opportunity for legislative reform of the AFP. The inquiry does not start and end with Mgen. Garcia; others ought also be involved. In fact, in the hearing dated October 28, 2004, the Committee on National Defense uncovered the overpricing of medicines and medical supplies for a military hospital. This shows that the Committee inquiry should indeed go on as long as it has to. Only by knowing the various manifestations of graft and corruption in the AFP can Congress be able to formulate the appropriate legislative solutions.
This was followed by more revelations on the office of the AFP COMPTROLLER. The committee also unearthed anomalies involving the predecessor of Gen. Garcia, namely Lt. Gen. Jacinto Ligot. Details will be shown later.
The Committee is thankful for the support of concerned citizens who believe that the inquiry should continue to expose the full extent of corruption in the AFP. As opined by Amando Doronila of the Philippine Daily Inquirer:
With the bringing down of the Armed Forces to the ground of accountability, it has now joined the distinguished company of its civilian counterparts and other sectors of civil society. The inquiries show that the military is no longer a sacrosanct institution, immune from civil scrutiny, and untouchable because its monopoly of the means of state violence gives it the power of life and death over civilian regimes, threatened by civil unrest and disorder.
UP College of Law Dean Raul Pangalangan, on the other hand, writes that, in the case of AFP corruption, Congress just might be the most effective investigator:
When comrades in arms are likewise partners in crime, it may take a highly political body like Congress and not the courts acting alone to carry through an investigation… Some critics fault our congressmen for "grandstanding" during the Garcia hearings. I disagree. It takes our elected legislators to take our military to task. Not the President, who is ever so careful lest she provoke another coup. Not the President's Cabinet men and women who are bereft of an electoral mandate and dependent upon the President's political fortunes. And, but for a few shining moments, not the courts either. They all are too refined, their condemnations too finessed, their positions so nuanced. They are incapable of outrage because they tread on dangerous ground when they inquire into military perks. Only the raw power of politics can stand up to the raw power of arms…
The resolve of the Committee was likewise bolstered by the support of many cause-oriented groups and anti-corruption watchdogs such as the Anti-Graft League of the Philippines and the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption. The inquiry has likewise received the support of Bishop Efraim Tendero, National Director of the Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches. And in a consultative meeting, the Philippine Military Academy Alumni Association, Inc. (PMAAAI) urged Congress to continue its inquiry in aid of crafting a procurement law that will address the peculiar needs of the AFP.
In a Committee hearing, Col. Ricardo Morales, the commanding officer of the Army’s 402nd Brigade, when asked his opinion about the ongoing inquiries on AFP corruption, had this to say: “…I think this incident provides the essential shakeup to overcome all the inertia within the armed forces and provides the impetus for investigation and reform…”
RESULT OF CONGRESSIONAL INQUIRY:
GARCIA AND LIGOT’S SUMMARY OF SUSPECTED WEALTH/CASES FILED
MGEN. CARLOS F. GARCIA
SUMMARY OF HIS SUSPECTED WEALTH:
• Customs and Border Patrol of the USA seized $100,000 from Gen. Garcia’s son.
• Records have shown that Gen Garcia and his wife transported $500,000 to the USA from the Philippines since 1993.
• ICE agents in the US have information that the Garcia family owns several properties in the US including 2 condominiums in New York and a house in Ohio. The condominiums value at over $1,420,000.
• Business interests in IJT Katamnan, Iloilo
• IJT Mango Orchard, Iloilo
• Various bank deposits that were frozen on order of the Anti-Money Laundering Council.
The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) later obtained a freeze order from the Court of Appeals for the following bank accounts in the name of Mgen. Garcia and/or the members of his immediate family:
Table 1: Landbank of the Philippines (LBP)
Greenhills Branch
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Carlos F. Garcia | Dollar Savings No. 0554-0017-00 |
| Carlos F. Garcia or Juan Paolo Garcia | Dollar Time Deposit No. 0559-0023-13 |
| Carlos F. Garcia or Clarita D. Garcia | Dollar Time Deposit No. 0559-0023-48 |
| Carlos F. Garcia or Ian Carl Garcia | Dollar Time Deposit No. 0559-0023-21 |
| Carlos F. Garcia or Timothy Mark Garcia | Dollar Time Deposit No. 0559-0023-30 |
| Carlos F. Garcia | ESP No. 0551-0419-64 |
Table 2: LBP Camp Aguinaldo Branch
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Carlos F. Garcia | Regular No. 1671-0407-55 |
Table 3: Allied Banking Corporation
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 32200115800001583004197 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 3200115800000001580017693 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark &/or Ian Carl | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 3200115800000001585004584 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | Philippine Peso No.3200115400001543008444 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | Philippine Peso No.3200115400000001545006332 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | Philippine Peso No. 3200115400000001540061707 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001084 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Juan Paulo | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001378 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark, Ian Carl | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001386 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001594 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001505 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark, Ian Car | US Dollar Account 3200215400000001548001491 |
Table 4: Armed Forces of the Philippines Savings
and Loans Association, Inc. (AFPSLAI)
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia | No. 01-352947-7 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | No. 02-010570-4 |
| Carlos F. Garcia | No. 01019009-06 |
| Carlos F. Garcia | No. 02-008173-2 |
Table 5: Banco De Oro Universal Bank
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark, Ian Carl Garcia | No. 11380034246 |
Table 6: Bank of the Philippine Islands
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Ian Carl, Juan Paulo, Timothy Mark | US Dollar Account No. 02002930000000- 9304002546 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Ian Carl, Juan Paulo, Timothy Mark | US Dollar Account No.020021070000000- 1074010985 |
Table 7: United Coconut Planters Bank
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia | No. 1161236755 |
| Clarita D. Garcia | No. 1161235880 |
| Timothy Mark Garcia | No. 1161236780 |
| Timothy Mark Garcia | No. 1161235775 |
| Timothy Mark Garcia | No. 11612355787 |
| Ian Carl Garcia | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 1161236767 |
| Ian Carl Garcia | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 1161235738 |
| Ian Carl Garcia | Philippine Peso Acct. No. 11612355740 |
Table 8: Planters Development Bank
| Account Holder | Account Type/No. |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Ian Carl | US Dollar Account No. 009860001459 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/Juan Paulo | US Dollar Account No. 009860001460 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark | US Dollar Account No. 009860001461 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Ian Carl | US Dollar Account No. 001660007001 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/Juan Paulo | US Dollar Account No. 001660007002 |
| Clarita D. Garcia &/or Timothy Mark | US Dollar Account No. 001660007003 |
CASES FILED AGAINST HIM:
Cases filed by Ombudsman:
• Administrative case: In violation of Sec. 8, in relation to Sec. 11 of RA 6713; Art. 183 of the Revised Penal Code; Sec. 52 A, Paragraphs (1) Dishonesty, (3) Grave Misconduct, and (20) Conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service under the Civil Service Law.
Status: Submitted for decision except the last one (still waiting for the position paper to be submitted by Garcia)
• Cases filed by Ombudsman in Sandiganbayan (Criminal cases): (1) In violation of Section 3E of RA 3019 (2) Forfeiture of ill-gotten wealth (3) Perjury
• Cases filed under General Court Martial in Violation of the Articles of War 96 (conduct unbecoming of an officer and a gentleman) and articles of War 97 (conduct prejudicial to good order and military discipline). Under AW 96, he was charged for wrongfully and unfaithfully failing to declare all his existing assets in his sworn Statement of Assets and Liabilities in 2003 which corresponds to his assets for 2002 and for his SAL submitted in 2004. Under AW 97, it was for knowingly, wrongfully and unlawfully making false statement under oath of his assets in his SAL. MGen. Garcia’s other charge under AW 97 was his status of an immigrant-permanent resident of the United States.
LT. GEN. JACINTO LIGOT
SUMMARY OF HIS SUSPECTED WEALTH (ROUGHLY P66M):
• A house in Buena Park, California worth $183,000 bought with cash in 2002
• A house in Anaheim, California worth $504,000 bought thru a loan in 2003
• Condominium in Essensa, The Fort, Taguig
• Condominium in Paseo Parkview
• Suspected ownership of condo in Bonifacio Ridge
• Parmil Farms
• House in MBAI, Muntinlupa City
• House in Brgy. Lapu-Lapu, Batangas City
• House in BCDA, Taguig
• He Also sold a house in Florida
• Property in Brgy. Imbayao, Malaybalay City, Bukidnon
CASES FILED AGAINST HIM:
• 2 Counts of PERJURY filed before the Ombudsman for knowingly and deliberately making untrufhful statements under oath in his Statement of Assets and Liabilities for the year 2002 and 2003.
• Violation of RA 1376 (unexplained wealth) also filed before the Ombudsman.
