DRILON BARES P128 MILLION 'MISSING' MILITARY FUNDS

A total of P128 million in military funds is missing and that the amount could still be in the hands of a former military comptroller accused of plundering funds from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Senator Franklin Drilon revealed Thursday.

Drilon's disclosure came after the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) admitted that the amounts were withdrawn by retired General Carlos Garcia in "four days" in 2004 even before the Court of Appeals issued a freeze order on the bank accounts of Garcia and his family.

"It is clear, therefore, that the amount being restituted of P135 or so million, clearly, is grossly insufficient if you consider the fact that prior to the freezing of the accounts, P128 million were withdrawn from these accounts and at this point could no longer be traced," Drilon told a Senate hearing on the controversial plea bargaining agreement entered into by Garcia and state prosecutors.

Vicente Aquino, executive director of AMLC, said the funds were in fact withdrawn by Garcia, his wife Clarita and their children "from October 5-8 prior to the issuance of the freeze order" by the court.

"Certainly, we presume and conclude that it is in the possession of General Garcia," added Drilon, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

Garcia, when pressed by Drilon regarding the "missing" funds, refused to answer and invoked his right against self-incrimination.

Drilon also exposed an apparent irregularity with the way the plea bargaining agreement was arrived at, with state prosecutors admitting that the "condition" of returning the missing P128 million was not complied with by Garcia before agreeing into the plea bargain deal.

AMLC's Aquino said they have forwarded to the Ombudsman bank records indicating that hundreds of millions of military funds were withdrawn by Garcia, but state prosecutors cannot say why the amount was not included in the plea bargain even though the evidence was presented to them.

"Based on bank records, a total of P128 million was withdrawn and was never returned to the national coffers and that the plea bargain was entered into even without this P128 million," Drilon stated.