The Supreme Court has designated several regional trial courts (RTCs) to hear corruption-related cases involving the government’s infrastructure projects plagued by anomalies.
In a statement on Saturday, the high court announced that the Office of the Chief Justice has approved the recommendation of Court Administrator Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta to designate specific RTC judges to handle the cases.
The court explained that jurisdiction over graft cases involving public officers holding positions lower than Salary Grade 27 will, meanwhile, be assigned to the proper RTC, Metropolitan Trial Court, Municipal Trial Court, or Municipal Circuit Trial Court in line with Batas Pambansa Blg. 129, or the Judiciary Reorganization Act.
‘These special courts will exclusively hear and decide corruption-related cases arising from infrastructure projects,’ read the statement from the Office of the Spokesperson of the Supreme Court.
In areas without designated RTCs, the cases shall be referred to the nearest judicial region with special courts.
Should there be any appeals from the decisions of the designated RTCs, they will be heard by the main anti-graft court, the Sandiganbayan.
The high court did not disclose how many RTCs were designated as special courts but explained that the directive was in accordance with Republic Act No. 10660, or the law that expands the jurisdiction of RTCs to include graft-related cases.
The law states that the RTC has ‘exclusive original jurisdiction’ when the graft case does not involve damage to the government or any bribery, or when it involves damage to the government or bribery from transactions not exceeding P1 million.
Judges of the RTCs designated as special courts will also undergo training from the Philippine Judicial Academy, including lectures to be led by associate justices of the Sandiganbayan.
The training will cover ‘substantive and procedural laws,’ according to the Supreme Court, including RA 7080, or the anti-plunder law; RA 3019, or the anti-graft law; rules on bail in plunder cases; evidentiary rules in anti-graft cases; the rule on cyber warrants; rules on forensic evidence; among others.