Tilting the scales of justice

The classic symbol of justice is a lady with a blindfold holding weighing scales that are perfectly balanced. The blindfold and the balanced scales denote impartiality.

One would expect that the secretary of Justice and our country’s lawmakers, the members of the legislature, fully understand and appreciate the symbolism.

However, current developments and the actuations and public statements of these officials have not been reassuring. And in committee hearings conducted by the House of Representatives and the Senate late last year, the country saw a brazen display of perversion of justice.

In a column on Dec. 14, 2016, I wrote about the conclusion arrived at by the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights chaired by Sen. Dick Gordon, which had conducted hearings on allegations of extrajudicial killings in the few months since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office, as well as the existence of a death squad in Davao City during Duterte’s incumbency as mayor.

The Senate inquiry was ostensibly a continuation by Gordon of the hearings initiated by Sen. Leila de Lima, until she was TKO’d from her committee chairmanship on a motion of boxer-solon, Manny Pacquiao.

I wrote: “The report ( of the committee) concluded that allegations of ‘ extrajudicial killings’ attributed to the Duterte administration and, by extension, to Duterte himself, had no basis in fact. Gordon apparently drew his committee’s conclusion because of the seemingly unreliable testimony and allegations of selfconfessed Davao Death Squad member, Edgar Matobato.

“This conclusion was drawn after only six Senate hearings, which had ostensibly been stymied by the withdrawal of Matobato from the hearings by Senator Antonio Trillanes IV.

“Apparently, Gordon and his committee members gave no weight to a report of Human Rights Watch in 2009 to the effect that ‘there were 124 targeted killings in Davao City from 1998 to 2008 alone, during Duterte’s term as mayor.’ A 103-page report included accounts of people with insider knowledge of the so-called Davao Death Squad, the victims’ families, witnesses, lawyers and local government officials.

“But for some fantastic reason, the Gordon committee concluded that there was no such thing as a Davao Death Squad, based on Matobato’s inconsistencies.”

De Lima was not only ejected from the Senate committee chairmanship, she was also broiled and roasted over hot coals in the House of Representatives which had decided to conduct hearings on the active drug trade masterminded from inside the New Bilibid Prison, allegedly abetted by the lady senator while she was Justice secretary.

Aside from unveiling her love affair with her former driverbodyguard, complete with sexual innuendoes, the House inquisitors and Secretary of Justice Vitaliano Aguirre II presented a lineup of self- incriminating witnesses — the imprisoned drug lords themselves — who gave varying and often conflicting testimonies on how De Lima had profited financially from allowing their criminal activities to flourish.

Fast forward to the present: Aguirre has gone ahead and directed a panel of prosecutors to file three cases against De Lima, two with the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court (instead of the logical forum, the Sandiganbayan) and one with the Office of the Ombudsman.

A warrant for the arrest of De Lima is expected shortly, following the filing of these charges.

Wrote Randy David in his column, Public Lives, in the

Philippine Daly Inquirer: “…what is remarkable is this: The same DoJ resolution carries a request for the dismissal of the illegal drugs cases filed against Herbert Colanggo, Engelberto Acenas Durano, Vicente Sy, Jojo Baligad, and Wu Tuan Yuan alias Peter Co, ‘since they will be utilized as prosecution witnesses.’”

And not only that: as leaked to media, Aguirre reportedly gave instructions to Bureau of Corrections officials to provide special privileges to the drug lords “in return for the testimony they gave during the congressional inquiry on the proliferation of drugs inside the New Bilibid Prison.”

Any nincompoop can tell you that a convicted criminal will be happy to give false testimony based on a promise of special privileges and dismissal of charges.

Aguirre insists that he has an airtight case against De Lima based on inconsistent, conflicting and self-serving testimonies. Yet, the Senate committee of Gordon discounted the testimony of self-confessed Davao Death Squad hitman Matobato incriminating Duterte because of “inconsistencies.”

Matobato’s testimony has just been corroborated by another self-confessed DDS killer, retired Davao cop Arthur Lascañas. He has confirmed the existence of the death squad and has pointed to Duterte as having personally ordered extrajudicial killings, including the murder of Davao broadcaster and Duterte critic Jun Pala.

Last year, when he testified before the Senate committee, Lascañas firmly denied the existence of the DDS and any involvement of Duterte in extrajudicial killings. For some reason, he has completely reversed his testimony and, in a videotaped media interview, specifically implicated Duterte.

About the revelations of Lascañas. Gordon, whose committee had rejected the allegations of the existence of the DDS, has not shown any interest in revisiting the case. As quoted by the media, Gordon said: “Ang advice ko, kung talagang meron kaso yung nagpapadala nyan, file n’yo na sa Ombudsman. Kasi ang Ombudsman pwede pa ring imbestigahan ang Pangulo pero ipa- file nya sa Kongreso kung gustong i- impeach (My advice if they really have a case, you file it with the Ombudsman. Because the Ombudsman can investigate the President but they need to file it with Congress if they want to impeach).”

Gordon, however, said that he doubted a Duterte-controlled House of Representatives would allow an impeachment case to gain any traction.

“Palagay ko hindi kasi hawak nila

yung lower house (I doubt it because they control the lower house).”

Gordon was, of course, stating the obvious. But what about his committee? Isn’t he at least going to give Matobato’s “perjured” testimony a second look? Or is it also obvious that Duterte controls the Senate and his committee?

That seems to be the case, going by the reactions of Senators Sherwin Gatchalian and Pacquiao. Gatchalian would have the Department of Justice indict Lascañas for perjury “for lying under oath to the Senate justice committee” last year.

Obviously intending to intimidate Lascañas into flip-flopping on his recent flip-flop, Gatchalian pompously declared, “Lascañas has made a mockery of the sol- emn proceedings of the Senate. He should be made to pay for the grave disrespect he has shown to this institution.”

For his part, Pacquiao implied that Lascañas may have been offered incentives by Duterte’s “oppositors”:

“Mahirap ang buhay ngayon, maraming nangangailangan (Life is hard these days, and many are in need),” Pacquiao told the media. “Huwag na nating sabihing money involved, baka nakumbinsi

sya ng kabila (This is not to say that money is involved but he may have been convinced by the other side).”

Pacquiao should have added, “Just like the witnesses against De Lima.”

On the other hand, one senator has endorsed the revised testimony of Lascañas. On the Senate floor, Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV made a motion to refer the DDS hitman’s new testimony to the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, chaired by Sen. Ping Lacson,

Lacson expressed readiness to conduct an inquiry but couldn’t resist warning Lascañas that he could be liable for perjury for recanting an earlier testimony given under oath.

In other words, “Back off.” As the Mafia would put it, “Fuggedaboutit!”

Don’t we get the feeling that the only witnesses who can safely commit perjury are those presented by the people in power?

Don’t we get the uneasy feeling that, in the Philippines, lady justice is peering through her blindfold and is tilting the scales?

And don’t you get the feeling that she is wearing a badly mounted wig?