Sandigan rejects appeal to block refiling of Pharmally raps

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December 9, 2025 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan has upheld its earlier resolution allowing the withdrawal of the Pharmally cases for review and possible refiling by the Office of the Ombudsman.

In a resolution dated Dec. 3, the court’s Sixth Division denied the motions for reconsideration filed by former Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management officer-in-charge Christopher Lloyd Lao, former PS-DBM procurement group director and former overall deputy ombudsman Warren Rex Hernandez Liong.

The court likewise rejected similar motions filed by Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. treasurer and corporate secretary Mohit Dargani, director Linconn Ong and financial manager Lin Weixiong.

The accused were seeking to overturn the Sixth Division’s Nov. 4 resolution granting the ombudsman’s prosecution panel’s request to withdraw five counts of graft and three counts of falsification of public documents, filed last Oct. 10.

The cases stemmed from the alleged anomalous procurement of RT-PCR test kits, face masks and other personal protective equipment from Pharmally at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

The accused argued that subjecting them to another round of investigation would cause undue delay, violating their right to the speedy disposition of cases.

Lao also contended in his motion that the ombudsman’s instruction to reinvestigate the procurement deal was not a valid legal ground for withdrawing already-filed cases.

In its ruling, however, the Sixth Division said claims of delay were “speculative” at this stage.

“At this point, the delay that will be caused by the withdrawal of the Informations and their subsequent refiling is speculative. At any rate, in the event that there is inordinate delay, the accused may invoke their right to speedy disposition of cases in court after the Informations are refiled, or even with the Office of the Ombudsman prior to the refiling of the Informations in court,” the court said.

The Sixth Division added that the ombudsman has the authority to review or reverse the actions of a predecessor.

“Considering the ombudsman’s jurisdiction to revoke or alter the rulings of a predecessor, and that the accused have not yet been arraigned, the Court rules that there is sufficient ground for the withdrawal of the present Informations,” it said.

On Nov. 7, the Sandiganbayan’s First Division similarly allowed the withdrawal of six other Pharmally-related cases pending before it.

Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier directed the Office of the Special Prosecutor to seek the withdrawal of Pharmally cases that have not yet reached arraignment.

These cases were filed when Samuel Martires was the ombudsman, but Remulla said they must be reevaluated because some facts and evidence were supposedly not considered.

In an interview with ANC yesterday, Remulla said the Pharmally cases filed during Martires’ term “seem to be intentionally weakened.”

“Parang pinahina ‘yung kaso eh. It was not a good case… We have to file the right case,” Remulla said. “The Pharmally case is significant. Remember, the anomaly was done during the pandemic when people were suffering and dying.”

Remulla said his office aims to refile the cases by May next year.