Ex-DPWH chief clinically stable in hospital arrest, eyed as state witness

The Philippine National Police General Hospital (PNPGH) said Wednesday that former Public Works and Highways Secretary Manuel Bonoan, who is under hospital arrest in connection with a corruption case, is "clinically stable" and is taking medication to control his hypertension. PNPGH Internal Medicine chief Lieutenant Colonel Benaly Bayani said Bonoan's hypertension is currently controlled with medication and he remains under the supervision of the hospital's medical team. He added that there are currently no major concerns regarding his health. When asked if Bonoan is stable enough to attend all hearings, Bayani told reporters, "You can see that he attends every hearing, you monitor his attendance. So, he is stable. There are no issues." This development comes after the Sandiganbayan Fifth Division recently granted the Ombudsman's motion to drop Bonoan from the plunder and graft charges he is involved in, along with former Senator Jinggoy Estrada. The court, in a 2-1 vote, ruled that it was within the Ombudsman's "prosecutorial discretion" to determine which accused it would use as a state witness. Last May, the Ombudsman had charged Bonoan and others with allegedly conspiring to amass more than P500 million in kickbacks from flood control projects. Information Source: GMA News Philippines