Manila court won’t order MJ’s arrest

The Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) denied yesterday a government request to order the immediate arrest of Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez who is facing extradition to the United States for a string of federal offenses.

Manila RTC Branch 42 Judge Guillermo Purganan denied the motion of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the grounds that the Supreme Court ruling on Jimenez’s case was not yet final.

"The decision rendered by the SC... insofar as granting of bail to Jimenez, has not attained finality and the urgent motion to execute the order of arrest is hereby denied," Purganan said in his one-page order.

The high tribunal ruled on Sept. 24 that Jimenez should be jailed while awaiting the outcome of his extradition trial but the congressman has 15 days to appeal the decision.

With Purganan’s ruling, Jimenez can remain free until after the SC rules on the motion for reconsideration which Jimenez’s lawyers filed last week.

The RTC ruling was signed on Monday but was not released until yesterday, according to clerk of court Willi Purisima.

Purisima said "the court was neither influenced nor pressured in issuing the ruling."

"The court was not under obligation to explain to (government lawyers). The court maintains its neutrality and impartiality. Everything is based on rules," Purisima said.

But the DOJ said Purisima’s order was not really a setback since the SC had already canceled the P1-million bail Jimenez posted on July 3, 2001.

"I don’t think this is a setback because we have the decision of the Supreme Court," said Justice Undersecretary Merceditas Gutierrez, who is in charge of the extradition cases being handled by the DOJ.

Gutierrez said they are still studying whether to ask the RTC to reconsider but stressed that extradition proceedings are summary in nature and the right to post bail does not apply.

"Extradition proceedings are by nature similar to deportation proceedings where the extraditee is made ready to face the court where the charges have been filed," the DOJ said in a statement.

And "since the high court has already ruled that extradition cases are not criminal proceedings, the constitutional right of an accused such as the right to bail does not apply."

Gutierrez cited the case of Charlie "Atong" Ang, a very close friend of deposed President Joseph Estrada, who is now detained in Las Vegas because of a pending extradition request of the Philippine government.

"Ang is now under detention in a Las Vegas detention center while awaiting the extradition proceedings earlier filed by the DOJ for the crime of plunder," she added.

But while government lawyers await the SC’s ruling on Jimenez’s motion for reconsideration, Jimenez’s supporters in Congress and his constituents in the sixth district of Manila expressed satisfaction with the decision.

Barangay chairwoman Eva Reyes said residents "were so happy with the decision that there were spontaneous outbursts of elation, like dancing in the streets."

Another barangay chairman, Danny del Rosario, lauded Purganan for "standing his ground."

The two barangay leaders were only two of some 115 barangay captains who called on congressional leaders "to protect their right to representation and safeguard the constitutional rights of their solon."

Jimenez’s supporters in the House of Representatives also welcomed Purganan’s decision.

Rep. Charity Leviste (Lakas, Oriental Mindoro) said she hoped the decision would defuse the tension on Jimenez’s case among the legislative, executive and judiciary.

"Let us just await the final decision of the Supreme Court on this matter," Leviste said.

Minority Leader Carlos Padilla (LDP, Nueva Vizcaya) said justice prevailed in Purganan’s decision.

"As I have always told my colleagues, let us allow the justice system to work. Let us let justice take its course," he said.

Rep. Willie Buyson Villarama (Aksyon Demokratiko, Bulacan) said Justice Secretary Hernando Perez knew from the moment he petitioned the Manila RTC that the judge would not defy the Supreme Court and would thus reject his request.

He said it was clear in the SC’s ruling that Jimenez had 15 days to file a motion for reconsideration and Perez was only riding on the issue "while it was hot so he could win pogi (or, brownie) points for 2004."

Deputy Minority Leader Constantino Jaraula (LDP, Cagayan de Oro) said Perez must have been motivated by politics in seeking Jimenez’s immediate arrest.

Jaraula had earlier filed a motion to amend Presidential Decree No. 1069, or the Extradition Law of 1977.

Jimenez, alias Mario Crespo, is facing 47 counts of tax evasion, mail fraud and illegal campaign contributions to the Democratic Party during the term of former US President Bill Clinton. If found guilty, he faces imprisonment of more than 100 years. — With reports from Delon Porcalla, Jess Diaz