Cusi co-accused in Malampaya case seeks court permission for Japan travel

MANILA — A co-accused of former energy secretary Alfonso Cusi in the graft case over the sale of Malampaya stake asked the Sandiganbayan to allow him to travel to Japan for a geoscience forum.

Demujin Antiporda, director III of the Department of Energy’s Energy Resource Development Bureau, asked the Sandiganbayan Third Division to permit him to travel from Oct. 24 to Nov. 1 for the 62nd Coordinating Committee for Geoscience Programmes in East and Southeast Asia annual session and the 87th CCOOP Steering Committee meeting.

In opposing the bid, the prosecution argued that Antiporda failed to establish that his attendance at the events was indispensable.

The prosecution argued that Antiporda could be a flight risk and his previous compliance with travel orders did not guarantee that he would return to the Philippines this time.

Antiporda’s counsel replied that the prosecution could not label him a flight risk without citing specific circumstances showing that he might not return to the country.

The defense cited Antiporda’s previous compliance with court-approved travels as proof that he had been amenable to the court’s jurisdiction.

It noted that Antiporda had previously been permitted to travel four times.

Antiporda told the court that he is the head of the Philippine delegation to the event and had been requested to serve as a keynote speaker.

However, the prosecution noted that other high-ranking DOE officials would also attend the event and could represent the agency in his absence.

The defense argued that the prosecution’s concerns about Antiporda’s possible failure to follow his itinerary were speculative, as there was no basis to presume that he would not attend the listed activities.

The court considered Antiporda’s motion submitted for resolution and asked the defense to furnish copies of documents supporting his participation in the event, including the request for him to serve as keynote speaker and details of his accommodations.

The Office of the Ombudsman started its investigation into Cusi and several DOE officials in 2022, after a Senate Energy Committee report questioned the 2019 sale of Chevron’s 45-percent stake in the Malampaya gas project to Udenna Corp., owned by businessman Dennis Uy.

The report alleged that Udenna’s unit UC Malampaya did not meet the financial qualifications required for the deal. It also accused the DOE of approving the transaction even though the company had not submitted audited financial statements.