Cops fail to serve arrest warrant vs bizman

CEBU, Philippines - The warrant of arrest issued against businessman James Philip Tionko was returned to the court after the latter was not found in his given address.

The police who served the warrant of arrest in the residence of Tionko in Maryville Subdivision, Talamban, Cebu City found out that the latter is no longer residing there.

Tionko ran for councilor in Cebu City as an independent candidate in 2010, but lost.

Judge Generosa Labra of Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 23 issued the warrant of arrest against Tionko on May 14, 2011 for the libel case that Mayor Michael Rama filed against Tionko after the businessman allegedly made libelous statements against him during the campaign period.

Meanwhile, Labra denied the motion filed by Tionko through his counsel, Attorney Nilo Seno asking the court to set the libel case for hearing for the determination of probable cause for lack of merit.

“In order for the judge to determine the existence of probable cause it is therefore not necessary for him to conduct a hearing but merely to personally evaluate the resolution of the prosecutor and its supporting evidence,” she ruled.

He added the case did not even undergo preliminary conference when it was in the prosecutor’s level, claiming the basis of the complaint was merely a news article.

However Rama filed an opposition to the motion filed by Tionko asking for the denial of the motion through private prosecutor Manuel Legaspi.

Rama said the clarificatory hearing to determine probable cause is not compulsory as affidavits and supporting documents of both parties were already filed by the prosecutor’s office.

Earlier, Tionko denied the allegations of Rama that he made libelous statements against him at the height of the campaign period.

 “There is no truth to the accusation of Rama that I maliciously imputed an act against him which would dishonor him or his family. The truth of the matter is that the utterance I made which the complainant believes to be injurious to his name was made in the course of my campaign against him in his bid for mayor of Cebu City,” Tionko said.

Tionko added the allegations that Rama is a “drug lord protector” did not originate from him, explaining he based his statements against Rama on printed reports that reportedly point to former mayor and now Cebu City south district Rep. Tomas Osmeña as the one who called Rama as such.

Rama filed a libel case against Tionko on April 28. — (FREEMAN)