Metro Manila, Philippines – The Sandiganbayan ordered on Friday, Sept. 11, the transfer of former House Speaker Martin Romualdez to the UP Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in Manila for an independent medical examination about his continuing hospital confinement.
The court’s third division said the examination is necessary to verify the medical findings of Romualdez’s doctors at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City.
It ordered the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology to bring Romualdez to PGH on Saturday, Sept. 12, in an ambulance equipped with the medical equipment required based on his doctors’ assessment.
The court also directed PGH chief Gerardo Legaspi or an authorized representative to examine the lawmaker without the direct or indirect participation of doctors from Cardinal Santos who may be connected with PGH.
The PGH team must submit its report to the court and testify on the findings on Monday, Sept. 14.
The court also ordered daily reports on Romualdez’s condition and said that the lawmaker will remain at PGH pending further orders.
Romualdez’s lawyer, Ade Fajardo, said the defense had already manifested its willingness to have his client undergo an independent medical examination.
“Our concern really is more medical than legal,” Fajardo said, adding that the defense is seriously concerned about Romualdez’s health and how the case could affect his overall well-being.
Fajardo also said Romualdez’s medical conditions are genuine and documented, pointing to his preexisting conditions, previous surgeries and what he described as silent strokes.
He said the defense’s main concern is the transfer itself, noting the court’s reference to a one-hour window for the trip from Cardinal Santos to UP-PGH.
“We wish na walang mangyaring masama, of course… Ang buhay ay buhay po,” Fajardo said.
[Translation: We wish that nothing bad happens, of course… a life is a life.]
Fajardo said the defense also understands the court’s decision to have Romualdez independently assessed in the interest of fairness and justice.
Ombudsman Boying Remulla welcomed the move, saying a public hospital is the appropriate place for Romualdez’s medical assessment.
“Face the music, face the charges like every other man should. Man up to it,” he said in a separate briefing.
Remulla said prosecutors will ask PGH doctors to determine whether Romualdez is fit to be transferred to a regular detention facility, adding that hospital confinement should be an exception in extreme cases.
He said the law should apply equally to the rich and poor.
The court reset the pre-trial and arraignment of Romualdez to Wednesday, Sept. 16.
Romualdez is facing a ₱7.4-billion plunder case filed by the Office of the Ombudsman and was arrested on Sept. 7 at Cardinal Santos, where he had been confined on medical grounds.
