THE National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) yesterday filed criminal complaints before the Department of Justice (DOJ) against lawyer and PDP-Laban senatorial bet Raul Lambino for allegedly spreading false information claiming the Supreme Court (SC) issued a temporary restraining order last March 11 to stop the arrest and subsequent surrender to the International Criminal Court of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
Also included in the complaint is former National Youth Commission commissioner and Duterte ally, Ronald Cardema.
“We filed cases against Raul Lambino and Mr. Cardema for violation of Article 154 ng Revised Penal Code, ito ‘yung tinatawag nating unlawful use of means of publication or unlawful utterances,” NBI Technical Intelligence Service Agent Allen Rey Delfin told reporters after filing the case.
Violation of Article 154 of the RPC can result in imprisonment ranging from one month and one day to six months, along with a fine between P40,000 and P200,000.
According to the NBI charge sheet, Lambino reportedly made the claim in a Facebook live on March 11, saying the SC has issued a TRO against Duterte’s arrest.
The High Court however did not issue any injunction and Duterte was flown to the Netherlands hours after he was arrested on the same day.
In his live video, Lambino claimed he supposedly received information that the SC has issued a TRO on the petition filed by Duterte and Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa seeking an injunction on the cooperation of the government with the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The Duterte-Dela Rosa petition also challenged the validity of Duterte’s arrest and detention based on the warrant issued by the international court.
Cardema, meanwhile, made similar claims during a media interview.
Though Cardema did not post the statement on his own social media accounts, the video was widely circulated through other Facebook pages.
Delfin said both statements had the same effect of misleading the public.
“Ang pangkaraniwang Pilipino, kapag na-assume natin na tama ang ganung isang news, magke-create siya ng mali ang ginagawa ng ating agents of the state (If the ordinary Filipino will assume that that kind of information is true, it will create an assumption that what the agents of the state are doing is wrong),” he said.
Delfin said the NBI conducted cyber patrolling and surveillance, identifying videos on Facebook where Lambino and Cardema made the claims.
“We came across videos in Facebook lalo na kay Atty. Lambino sa FB live wherein he uttered words that the Supreme Court already issued a TRO. This false news when published as news will tend to endanger the public as well as discredit our state. On the part of Cardema, he stated also that there’s a temporary restraining order issued by the SC,” he said.
Last week, the SC ordered Lambino to explain why he should not be sanctioned over his claim that the High Court has issued a TRO against the arrest of Duterte.
“This misinformation caused public confusion and misled the people about the SC’s actions,” the SC show cause order said.
NOT IN SENATE RULES
Meanwhile, Sen. Imee Marcos yesterday said she was “surprised” by the show cause order issued by Senate President Francis Escudero against Special Ambassador on Transnational Crime Markus Lacanilao, who was cited in contempt by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations last week for allegedly lying during the last committee hearing on Duterte’s arrest.
In a virtual press conference, Marcos said the issuance of show cause orders has never been part of the Senate’s processes, pointing out that it is nowhere found in the Senate Rules.
Lacanilao is the special ambassador on transnational crimes who oversaw the arrest and turnover of Duterte to the ICC in The Hague last March 11 on behalf of the Philippine government.
The panel, chaired by Marcos, said Lacanilao was lying when he repeatedly claimed that he has no knowledge was brought out from the Villamor Air Base to a competent court for judicial determination as a requisite before the former president was flown to The Netherlands.
Lacanilao, who was also the country representative of the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), said his actions were based on good faith on the certification issued by Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon that Duterte’s arrest and turn-over was “carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Rome Statute.”
It was Sen. Ronald dela Rosa who moved to cite Lacanilao in contempt.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla’s appeal to reconsider the committee’s citation was rejected by Marcos, who approved Dela Rosa’s motion and ordered Lacanilao’s detention.
Escudero has refused to sign the contempt order, and instead issued a show cause order against Lacanilano, directing him to explain why the Senate should not cite him in contempt and order his detention.
Escudero also ordered his release from Senate custody.
The show cause order was issued April 11.
Marcos said Dela Rosa was fed up with Lacanilao for not telling the truth.
“Sen. Dela Rosa moved to cite Lacanilao in contempt. I cannot do anything because he is blatantly lying,” Marcos said in Filipino.
“Ang nakakalungkot lang ay sinuwag naman ang desisyon ng komite ng ating Senate president. Kaya nabigla naman kami. Never heard naman yung may show cause-show cause. Wala sa buong rules yung show cause-show cause (What was disappointing was that the committee’s decision was turned down by our Senate president, which caught us by surprise. That show cause order is never heard of in the Senate. That show cause order is nowhere to be found in the [Senate] rules),” she added.
In turning down the committee’s contempt order, Escudero said that a contempt citation on resource persons “is subject to the approval of the Senate president,” which serves as a safeguard to ensure that the powers of the upper chamber are “exercised prudently with due regard for the rights of all and not wielded for personal or political ends.”
“For reasons unknown, Senator Imee Marcos appears to have disregarded this longstanding rule or conveniently forgotten it that the approval of the Senate president is not automatic nor ministerial simply because she desires it,” Escudero said.
Escudero said that “for the record,” he did not refuse to sign the contempt order on Lacanilao as Marcos “flaunted to the media her signed arrest and detention order even before I could see, much less, receive a copy of it.”
He said Lacanilano was ordered detained “without the requisite approval and due process,” thus he ordered his release.
He said that he will review the committee proceedings and assured Marcos and the public that he will exercise his duty and discretion “in accordance with the law to determine their propriety devoid of political agenda or motivation.”
“I will not allow the Senate or the Office of the Senate President to be used to further petty partisan interests, especially those actively seeking reelection in the coming May midterm polls. The Senate is an institution of reason and rule, it is not a tool to be leveraged for propaganda or self-promotion,” he said.
“I urge Senator Marcos to refrain from using the Senate as a platform for her own personal political objectives and to instead use her name, title, influence as a bridge toward unity, not a wedge for division. Our people and our country expect and deserve no less,” he added.
In the same virtual press conference, Marcos said she did not expect the hearing to turn out to be “emotional” as what she would want was not to cause further divisiveness among the people.
“Inaakala ko na mas maganda na malaman natin ang katotohanan, mabuksan ang mga pangyayari at ang buong bayan ay mapanatag ang kalooban. Ngunit nakita natin na napakaraming labag sa batas
(I thought that knowing the truth by openly discussing what really happened will calm the people. But we learned that there were many violations of the law that were committed),” she said.
Marcos urged Escudero to take a look at the “real” rules of the Senate since there is really nothing about the issuance of a show cause order.
“Ang akin na lamang, balikan natin ang tunay na rules ng Senado kung saan walang mahahanap kahit minsan ang binabanggit na show cause. Yung ginagamit para sa politika, nakakatuwa naman, kasi alam naman natin na siya ay yung ambisyoso
(On my end, I would just like for him to review real Rules of the Senate wherein we cannot find that show cause mentioned even once. As for my using the hearing for political gains, I find it amusing, since we all know that is he who has ambitions),” she added. – With Raymond Africa
