Duque posts bail, vows to challenge graft rap

Former health secretary Francisco Duque III has posted bail before the Sandiganbayan for his graft case in connection with alleged irregularities in the Department of Health (DOH)'s transfer of P41.46 billion to the Department of Budget and Management Procurement Service (PS-DBM) at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

- Elizabeth Marcelo

In a message yesterday to The STAR, Duque said he posted the required P90,000 bail before the Sandiganbayan First Division last Sept. 4, in exchange for his provisional liberty.

"I've posted bail on Sept. 4 immediately after I found out about the filing of the case before the Sandiganbayan," Duque said, as he vowed to challenge the validity of the case, which was filed by the ombudsman in August.

"I will be pursuing the remedies available to me to question the resolution of the ombudsman, not only in the Sandiganbayan, but also with the Supreme Court," he said.

Duque's co-accused, former PS-DBM executive director Lloyd Christopher Lao, had also posted bail shortly after he was arrested by the tracker teams of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Davao City on Wednesday.