Bunye: Kuratong case to rest after court resolution

Malacañang said yesterday that the government’s pursuit of the Kuratong Baleleng multiple murder case against opposition Sen. Panfilo Lacson and his 33 co-accused is not covered by the principled reconciliation offer of President Arroyo to her foes and critics.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the multiple murder charges against Lacson and his co-accused for the murder of 13 Kuratong Baleleng robbery gang members constitute a criminal case filed before the courts.

Bunye said government prosecutors are merely discharging their duties as protectors of the law and due process to exhaust all legal remedies available to them.

While the government understands the appeals made by the accused in the Kuratong Baleleng case, Bunye said they "should also understand that the DOJ has a job to do."

Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Theresa Yadao dismissed the case Wednesday and said she was pressured into handing down a conviction. Yadao was the same judge who tried and dismissed the case in 1995.

Bunye also denied Yadao’s allegations that the Palace extended pressure on ther.

Lacson had claimed the reopening of the Kuratong Baleleng case is political harassment aimed at derailing his presidential bid. But Bunye said the DOJ "must exhaust all legal remedies available to the government. After that, if there is a final resolution of this case, then this case would really cease."

Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño earlier vowed to file a motion for reconsideration, appeal the dismissal of the case before the Supreme Court and file administrative charges for Yadao’s disbarment.

Bunye defended the DOJ’s assessment of the situation, but said "they should have good grounds if they want to pursue the third alternative."

Zuño and private prosecutor Arno Sanidad earlier expressed hope the case will finally reach trial after eight years, hopes that were foiled by Yadao’s dismissal of the case.

Sanidad said Yadao showed her bias by prejudging the case even as the prosecution is set to file a motion for reconsideration.

The outright dismissal of the case is unacceptable to the prosecution panel because they have witnesses and evidence to prove the Kuratong Baleleng members were killed while in police custody, not in a shootout.

Zuño said the DOJ is mulling administrative charges against Yadao for "grave abuse of discretion" and "gross ignorance of the law."

He also said a judge is supposed to determine only probable cause and not evaluate the prosecution’s evidence without the benefit of a fair hearing.