The testimony of the lead witness and former Public Works undersecretary Roberto Bernardo is needed to block the bid for temporary freedom of former Senator Ramon ‘Bong’ Revilla Jr.
Associate Justice Karl Miranda, the chairman of the anti-graft court’s Third Division, stressed the importance of Bernardo’s testimony during the bail hearing for Revilla’s malversation case and those of several co-accused.
Previous witness testimonies cited Bernardo as the one who informed them that Revilla allegedly received a 30-percent ‘commitment’ for the P92.8 million flood control project in this case, which was found to have no visible structures.
Bernardo was supposed to take the witness stand this Thursday, but he skipped today’s proceeding as prosecutors informed the court that he was hospitalized on Wednesday.
Revilla already posted P90,000 bail on the graft charge, but he remains in jail due to malversation, which is non-bailable. In such cases, the accused may be granted bail only if, after a hearing, the prosecution fails to prove that the evidence of guilt is strong.
Miranda said that without Bernardo’s testimony, ‘there will now be a question as to the strength of your evidence.’
‘If we are going to establish that the evidence of guilt is strong, we need to present Undersecretary Bernardo,’ Deputy Special Prosecutor Omar Sagadal told the court.
‘He will be presented to prove that the evidence of guilt is strong,’ Sagadal also said.
On Wednesday, the Third Division ordered Dr. Warlin Basuel, Medical Officer IV of the Sandiganbayan, to verify Bernardo’s condition.
The medical certificate states that Bernardo ‘is suffering from chronic rhinosinusitis, follicular pharyngitis, and acute bronchitis and is currently being treated at the Asian Hospital and Medical Center’ and that he would need bed rest for five days.
Reporting his findings in court, Basuel said Bernardo had a cough, while noting that he had sinus surgery in December last year.
‘You’re saying that he’s not malingering, he’s not feigning physical symptoms of illness?’ Miranda asked.
‘In my observation, he’s really suffering from a cough,’ Basuel said.
However, Basuel noted that Bernardo expressed willingness to testify on Friday.
Basuel was ordered by the court to issue a final recommendation regarding Bernardo’s condition by the end of the day.
This recommendation will be used as a basis for the court to determine whether it will allow Bernardo to skip Friday’s proceeding, which is the final hearing on the bail petition.