Ex-MSU chancellor gets jail sentences for spending school funds on car repairs

MANILA, Philippines – The anti-graft court Sandiganbayan has convicted a former official of the Mindanao State University (MSU) in Zamboanga Sibugay, sentencing him to two separate prison terms for graft and malversation of public funds.

Taha Guro Sarip, a former chancellor of the MSU campus in Buug, Zamboanga Sibugay, was found guilty by the Sandiganbayan 1st Division, and received a sentence of six to seven years for graft and one to three years more for malversation of public funds.

The anti-graft court also permanently barred Sarip from holding any government position and ordered him to pay fines equivalent to the amount of the misused public funds, on top of the full amount which he has already refunded.

Prosecutors filed the cases against Sarip in 2022 based on the findings of a special government audit team led by State Auditor Katrina Acana on August 14, 2014. The team discovered that MSU funds, amounting to P96,657, were spent for the maintenance of Sarip’s car, a Toyota Innova, from April 2011 to November 2012.

Before the anti-graft court, Sarip maintained his innocence and maintained that the use of the public funds was done in good faith. He argued that he used the car for official travels and relied on his subordinates’ assurances that repair reimbursements were allowed. 

He also pointed out that he has returned the full amount after the Commission on Audit (COA) issued a notice of disallowance.

The court, however, rejected Sarip’s defense, stating that he provided no evidence of official travel using his vehicle or proof that it was damaged during such travels. 

Neither did Sarip present testimonies from the MSU vice chancellor for finance, the university accountant, or the cashier who allegedly advised him that the reimbursement was permissible, the Sandiganbayan noted.

The court also pointed out that the COA issued an order of execution in August 2019, but Sarip only returned the full amount on February 13, 2023, six months after the case was filed against him.

The Sandiganbayan said that “the evidence on record would show that he was aware of the illegality of the disbursements,” and that Sarip “took advantage of his official position to gain in dishonest ways.” – Rappler.com