Arraignment of Estrasa, Bonoan moved to June 4

National

THE Sandiganbayan’s Second Division has postponed the arraignment of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and former Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan to June 4.

Bonoan’s arraignment was deferred after he reportedly showed signs of hypertension.

A report by Inquirer.net stated that the 80-year-old former official had been taken to the Philippine National Police General Hospital on Monday night after his blood pressure reportedly rose to a critical level following his surrender to authorities.

Estrada, 63, and Bonoan are facing graft charges before the Sandiganbayan’s Second Division and plunder charges before its Fifth Division in connection with the alleged flood control fund anomaly.

Three former chief engineers of the Department of Public Works and Highways are also among those accused in the plunder case.

During the proceedings, Estrada initially indicated that he was prepared for arraignment and pretrial. However, he later withdrew the manifestation after consulting with his legal counsel, who filed a motion to cancel the arraignment, citing the senator’s prior commitments.

The charges stem from the ongoing investigation into the alleged flood control scandal that has implicated several government officials.(Shanice Kaye Ocio, CNU Comm Intern)