n September 21, 1972 Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, then in his second and last term as president, issued Presidential Decree 1081 placing the Philippines under Marial Law. Under the pretext of saving the country from a growing Communist insurgency, Marcos and his co-conspirators then proceeded to systematically plunder the country of its wealth, its treasures and its financial resources.

Now almost thirty-five years later, only an insignificant portion of what was plundered has been recovered. Worse yet, none of Marcos' cronies or his criminal collaborators have ever been prosecuted.

A case in point is the recent Supreme Court ruling dismissing the cases against Benjamin ‘Kokoy’ Romualdez, Imelda Marcos' brother and a former ambassador, based on a technicality. According to a four-judge division of the High Court, the period for which the government can file charges against Romualdez has lapsed. Three justices: Santiago, Quisumbing, and Azcuna voted in the majority, while Justice Antonio Carpio, dissented. Justice Carpio argued that because Romualdez had fled the country after the Marcoses were run-out of Malacañang, and returned only in the year 2000, the term of prescription should not have continued to run during the time he was away from the country.

The government can still pursue this case and seek an 'en banc' decision from the entire Court. In addition, the current law should be amended to state that the proscription period for plunder cases and Marcos-era crimes does not continue to run when an accused has fled the country. Otherwise, all that those nefarious characters have to do is cool their heels abroad for a while and return with their loot free and clear at the appropriate time.