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MANILA, Philippines – Senator Vicente Sotto III and 15 of his colleagues asked the anti-graft court to show “judicial compassion” to detained Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile.
Sotto wrote the Sandiganbayan to request for house arrest for his close ally, Enrile, who has been confined at the Makati Medical Center for two weeks now after contracting pneumonia and coughing blood.
The acting Senate minority leader sent the court a copy of his privilege speech last March 2 where he said that “justice is no less diminished” if Enrile is detained at his residence at the posh Dasmariñas Village in Makati instead of at the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital in Quezon City.
“Compassion is urged to be extended to Senator Enrile on account of his health and his being 91 years old already,” Sotto said in his cover letter dated March 9.
He said his colleagues “expressed conformity with the intent and tenor of his speech.” The following senators signed and noted Sotto’s letter:
- Senate President Franklin Drilon
- Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto
- Senator Gregorio Honasan II
- Senator JV Ejercito
- Senator Nancy Binay
- Senator Sergio Osmeña III
- Senator Juan Edgardo Angara
- Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV
- Senator Lito Lapid
- Senator Cynthia Villar
- Senator Grace Poe
- Senator Teofisto Guingona III
- Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr
- Senator Loren Legarda
- Senator Francis Escudero
Those who did not sign the letter are Enrile’s rivals: Senators Miriam Defensor Santiago, Alan Peter Cayetano, Pia Cayetano, and Antonio Trillanes IV, as well as Senate justice committee chairman Aquilino Pimentel III.
‘Pass a law instead’
Sotto asked that the letter and speech be considered an attachment to “any previous or future motion of the counsel of Senator Enrile seeking the grant of said house arrest.”
Vice President Jejomar Binay is also in favor of house arrest for Enrile, his coalition ally.
Yet Enrile’s son, former Cagayan Representative Juan Ponce “Jack” Enrile Jr, said last week that his father was against house arrest, and wanted to prepare for his trial at the PNP hospital. The younger Enrile said his father’s condition was improving.
Enrile has been detained at the PNP facility since July 2014 over the pork barrel corruption scandal. Along with senators Jinggoy Estrada and Ramon Revilla Jr, he is accused of siphoning off development funds for the poor to fake non-governmental organizations in exchange for multi-million peso kickbacks.
Last week, Santiago detailed his objection to Sotto’s proposal. Enrile’s toughest rival said that granting the senator house arrest smacks of special treatment.
“How many people of his age died in jail waiting for their appeals to be decided? Why are we making an exception for him?” Santiago said.
She joked: “If we allow Enrile’s house arrest, everyone in jail will claim to have pneumonia. There will be an epidemic of pneumonia!”
Escudero raised the same arguments in a previous press conference but ended up signing Sotto’s letter.
Both lawyers, Santiago and Escudero said that instead of making an exception for Enrile, lawmakers should ensure that all aging detainees are given the same treatment.
Santiago said, “If we want persons of that age to stay out of jail, let us have a law. You don’t ask for an exception for one person in a democracy.” – Rappler.com
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