MANILA — Ombudsman prosecutors have asked the Sandiganbayan to allow them to present a state auditor as a witness in the graft case against former Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and former Budget Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao over alleged irregularities in COVID-19 procurement.

In a media report, it said that the prosecution said the Commission on Audit (COA) witness will testify on the delayed and non-delivery of medical supplies purchased during the pandemic, which are central to the case.

“Our witness from COA will testify on that (delayed deliveries and non-deliveries of the COVID-19 purchases), Your Honor,” the prosecution panel told the court.

The case stems from the alleged unlawful transfer of P41 billion in Department of Health (DOH) funds to the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM), then headed by Lao, for the procurement of medical supplies during the pandemic.

The items involved included detection kits, nucleic acid extraction machines, mechanical ventilators, personal protective equipment, surgical masks, cadaver bags, and various test kits.

Prosecutors alleged that Duque approved the fund transfer despite claims that it would not speed up project implementation and despite the DOH’s capacity to undertake procurement.

Duque’s defense questioned whether testimony on delayed and non-delivered items was material to proving guilt.

In response, prosecutors said the issue is essential to the case as it relates to a core element of the allegations.

The exchange prompted Sandiganbayan First Division Chairperson Associate Justice Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega to direct both parties to submit their arguments in writing.

“You can put it in writing, and the defense can file their comment,” Arcega said.

During the proceedings, Assumption Ingrid Reyes of the Senate Legislative Records and Archives Service was presented as a witness and confirmed that her office has custody of records and transcripts from the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s 2021 to 2022 inquiry into the P41-billion DOH-PS-DBM fund transfer.

However, Reyes said she had no personal knowledge of the allegations against Duque.