Binay still an ally of Noy, but UNA slams De Lima

MANILA, Philippines - Vice President Jejomar Binay remains a friend of President Aquino and his family, spokesman Cavite Gov. Jonvic Remulla said yesterday.

“Vice President Binay remains an ally of the President. More importantly, he continues to be a real friend of the Aquino family,” Remulla said.

“The views he articulated during the forum with lawyers were a product of the experience and wisdom he gained as a life-long human rights advocate and as a lawyer well-versed on the constructs of our legal system,” Remulla added, referring to last Tuesday’s forum hosted by Binay.

Remulla issued the statement following reports of an impending breakup between Aquino and Binay.

Binay’s United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), on the other hand, urged Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to focus on pressing cases instead of joining a hatchet job against the Vice President.

UNA interim secretary general JV Bautista said De Lima has too many cases on her plate.

Bautista said there are more pressing and serious cases like the still unresolved Maguindanao
massacre and the recent killing of a Filipino by a US serviceman.

Bautista said De Lima should insulate herself from the political ax machine since her department is handling many cases.

“Her time is better spent enforcing the laws and protecting society from crime running rampant in our streets,” Bautista said.

Bautista said De Lima is “dead wrong” in insisting that she has the power to investigate the Vice President.

“What will be the purpose of such an investigation, except as an exercise in futility, at least, and a pure political harassment of the Vice President at best,” Bautista said.

De Lima earlier stated the DOJ would investigate the allegations of corruption that Binay is facing before the ombudsman.

Bautista added that only the ombudsman is authorized by law to investigate impeachable officials, not for the “purpose of filing a criminal suit but to determine commission of an impeachable offense.”

“The secretary of justice has no such power; De Lima should read her administrative code to find out the extent of her authority,” Bautista said.

“De Lima claims that only the President and the State are immune from suit; that is correct only insofar as civil suits are concerned. After all, you cannot file a criminal suit against the State. But all impeachable officials are immune from criminal suit,” he added.

Bautista said the Vice President enjoys immunity from criminal suit similar to the President. He said they are the only two elective officials who are impeachable and immune from suit.

“The Supreme Court has already settled this in jurisprudence. But then, De Lima is not known to be following orders from the Supreme Court; that is why she has a pending disbarment case. If she insists on her abusive crusade to investigate and harass the VP, another disbarment case may be forthcoming,” Bautista warned.