Esperon urged to reconsider order to court-martial officers in coup try

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. urged yesterday Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon to reconsider his order to court-martial several senior military officers accused of involvement in a failed coup last Feb. 24.

"It is a sign of a military mind in action, meaning to say it is very authoritarian in its decision-making so that no matter what a duly constituted review panel has found out in the matter of investigating General Miranda, et al, (it) is no deterrent to a predetermined course of action by the AFP chief-of-staff," he said.

Pimentel said Esperon’s disregard of the Judge Advocate General’s Office’s (JAGO) recommendation to dismiss the charges against the military officers led by former Marine commandant Maj. Gen. Renato Miranda would create the impression that they are being persecuted.

Esperon’s action will "stoke the fires of discontent" in the military ranks, he added.

This "kind of authoritarianism" being applied in handling the case against the alleged mutineers "is not good for the rule of law," Pimentel said.

Within five days the special general court martial will be ready to try the 30 Scout Ranger and Marine officers headed by Miranda and former Army Scout Rangers chief Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim.

Speaking before attending a forum of the Philippine Constitution Association at the Manila Hotel, Esperon said yesterday he is firm in his decision to court-martial Miranda, his Philippine Military Academy classmate, and Lim, one of his trusted officers.

"It’s my prerogative," he said in response to questions whether he overruled the recommendation of the AFP’s Pre-Trial Investigation panel to dismiss the coup d’etat charges against the accused military officers.

"In fact, I’m looking at five days from now (when) we will probably be convening already the general court-martial."

Esperon said he was just awaiting the recommendation from the AFP deputy chief of staff, who would choose the senior officers that would sit in the five-member court martial.

Esperon said upon review of the findings of a JAGO pre-trial investigation (PTI) panel headed by Col. Al Perreras, referred the matter to his staff judge advocate, Col. Pedro Herrera Davila for further study and for legal advise.

"If I have indeed not approved all of their recommendations, that is my prerogative as the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines," he said.

Esperon did not say if the JAGO report to him recommended the dropping of mutiny charges against the accused military officers.

"I will not tell you the contents," he said.

"Suffice it to say that they are my references, whatever are their contents, they served as my references in arriving at my decisions.

"I must tell you that the PTI report is a signed report, and there is only one copy of that original report, it is with me and I have turned that over to the Judge Advocate General so anything that you see in the Internet is not the PTI report."

As he ordered court-martial for 30 officers, Esperon absolved eight others and ordered them released from detention and reinstated to full duty status.

One of the eight officers whom Esperon absolved was Maj. Oriel Pangcog, who was among the 18 military officers recommended by the Perreras report to stand trial for violation of Articles of War No. 96.

Asked about Pangcog’s case, Esperon said: "As I said, the PTI report and the PTA are my basis for arriving at my decisions. I do not have to abide by the PTI report and by the PTA, they are my basis, I could refer to them as my basis for my decisions."

Shortly after Esperon announced on Monday morning that 30 officers would face court martial, an unsigned Perreras report was posted in the Internet.

In that version, military investigators recommended the dropping of the charges against Miranda and other accused military officers now facing court martial for insufficiency of evidence.

Aside from Miranda, Lim, and Querubin, the other military officers ordered court-martialed were Marine Colonels Orlando de Leon, Januario Caringal and Armando Banez; Lieutenant Colonels Valentin Hizon, Parcon, Romulo Gualdrap, Segumailan; Maj. Franciso Domingo Fernandez; and 1Lt. Belinda Ferrer, Miranda’s aide de camp. — With Jaime Laude, Delon Porcalla