MANILA, Philippines – Caught in the probe related to the multibillion-peso flood control corruption scandal, several elected officials have been placed under precautionary hold departure orders (PHDOs), while others are already facing regular hold departure orders (HDOs), barring them from leaving the country.
Both PHDOs and HDOs act as preventive court orders issued by a judge at the request of prosecutors. They, however, differ based on the status of the case.
The Department of Justice’s Circular No. 97 series of 1998 defines HDOs as orders issued strictly by the court handling a case, preventing individuals from leaving the Philippines after formal criminal charges have been filed against them. This could come from a regional trial court or the Sandiganbayan.
Meanwhile, a PHDO mandates the Bureau of Immigration to prevent any attempt by a suspect to depart from the country while a preliminary investigation is still ongoing and before formal charges are filed in court, according to the Supreme Court’s Office of the Court Administrator Circular No. 194-2018.
A PHDO, however, can only be granted when probable cause based on the attachment of the filed complaints has been established.
