THE Sandiganbayan Fifth Division can now proceed with the estafa case against Hannah Eunice D. Serana, former student regent of the University of the Philippines, and her brother Jade Ian D. Serana, after the Supreme Court upheld its jurisdiction over the case.

Serana is accused of soliciting P15 million from former President Joseph Estrada in October 2000 through an alleged fraudulent representation that the state university was renovating the Vinzons Hall in Diliman and changing the building’s name to "President Joseph Ejercito Estrada Student Hall."

Prosecutors said the Office of the President issued a Land Bank check for P15 million which was subsequently encashed by Serana’s brother on Oct. 25, 2000. The funds then disappeared prompting prosecutors to accuse the Seranas of pocketing them.

Serana, through lawyer Renato G. dela Cruz, challenged the graft court’s jurisdiction over the case on the ground that neither she nor her brother was a public official. She said the actions imputed against her were not in relation to any government office and but only in her personal capacity.

But the Sandiganbayan held that Serana’s position as a member of the UP Board of Regents is similar to that of a trustee in a non-stock corporation. The court said it is the power wielded by her position, not whether she is being paid a salary, that is the essential element of a public office.

It also said the source of the fund, whether from Estrada’s own pocket or from the Office of the President, is an evidentiary matter that must be proven during trial proper. – Peter J. G. Tabingo