PROOF OF SINS | Sandiganbayan orders bank to return P373M of Marcos ill-gotten wealth

September 30, 2021 , 11:01 AM

By Beatrice Puente

(September 30, 2021) – Sandiganbayan has ordered the Royal Traders Holding Co. Inc. to return millions worth of ill-gotten wealth taken by the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. in what many view as proof of the numerous crimes he committed during his iron-fisted rule.

In a 52-page decision, the anti-graft court’s second division told the bank—formerly Traders Royal Bank (TRB)—to pay P96 million and $5.43 million as indicated in bank certificates seized from the records taken by the Marcoses when they fled to Hawaii in 1986. TRB, which sold itself to the Bank of Commerce, also has to pay a 12% annual interest starting from February 1983.

MATAPOS ANG HIGIT DALAWANG DEKADA

Inutusan ng Sandiganbayan ang Royal Traders Holding Co., Inc. na bayaran ang gobyerno…

Posted by News5 on Tuesday, September 28, 2021

It essentially upheld the Hawaii District Court’s decision in 1992 affirming the turnover of jewelry, documents, as well as other items to the government of the Philippines. TRB had earlier insisted that it has no outstanding debt but Sandiganbayan did not buy the justification.

“The Court finds the above assertion totally untenable,” said Sandiganbayan in the decision. “The bank certificates which were brought by the Marcoses to Hawaii have not been surrendered to TRB. This negates TRB’s claim that payments have been made.”

Lawmakers and cause-oriented groups welcomed the decision as undeniable evidence of Marcos’ sins during his dark military regime. Many also urged the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), the plaintiff in the case, to continue going after the funds that the dictator’s family stole.

The Marcoses have repeatedly brushed off criticisms of their unexplained wealth. Former senator Bongbong Marcos Jr., who has dropped hints that he will run for president in the 2022 elections, has adamantly denied that his family committed massive corruption, insisting there was “no evidence” despite many court decisions.

Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said Sandiganbayan’s ruling, which was promulgated last Friday, can disprove the lies purposely spread to freshen the image of the Marcos family. Zarate emphasized that the country has “a long way to go” before fully retrieving what the Marcoses took from the Filipinos.

“This debunks the revisionist narrative of the Marcos loyalists that the Marcos family and his cronies did not commit plunder and had no ill-gotten wealth during the time the dictator was in Malacañang,” said Zarate on ABS-CBN News Channel.

Sandiganbayan’s decision came just days after the country marked the 49th anniversary of Marcos’ declaration of Martial Law, which killed more than 3,000 people and abused thousands more. Victims of the Marcos regime stressed the need to combat efforts to revise history to prevent a repeat of the dark past.

Zarate noted that court decisions should serve as a tool to remind the public about the atrocities of the Marcos family.

“They want to hoodwink, especially the younger generation now hindi naabutan ‘yung madugong batas militar that (loyalists say) is the golden era of the Philippines—which is totally untrue,” said Zarate.

The Marcoses have yet to comment on Sandiganbayan’s ruling.

(PM)

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