Teves’ lawyers want Degamo slay case moved to ombudsman

MANILA, Philippines — Lawyers of suspended Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. are asking the Department of Justice (DOJ) to inhibit from the so-called Pamplona massacre case, and have the case transferred to the Office of the Ombudsman where they feel “assured of fairness.”

Ferdinand Topacio, lead counsel for Teves, filed a motion to inhibit the panel of prosecutors looking into the murder of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo and nine others – where the congressman is a principal suspect – saying the pronouncements of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla against Teves destroyed the impartiality of the agency’s probe.

“Since the secretary of justice has pronounced him guilty, what prosecutor would dare say there’s no ‘probable cause’ now? Any prosecutor that says there is no probable cause, in effect, says that what their secretary is saying is wrong,” Topacio told reporters yesterday.

“What prosecutor would go against the secretary, who handles their promotion, assignments and other administrative facets of their employment?” he added.

The 14-page motion he filed hinges on three grounds: the DOJ is not an impartial tribunal due to Remulla’s statements that “prejudged” the case before it had been filed, Teves’ right to due process was violated due to Remulla’s alleged accusations, and the preliminary investigation is “better heard by an impartial tribunal” like the ombudsman.

In previous interviews and briefers, Remulla referred to Teves’ refusal to return to the country to face the charges as an “indicator of his guilt.”

Topacio said their camp feels more comfortable having the case undergo preliminary investigation by the ombudsman, saying the office is not as politicized as the DOJ, which “acts at the pleasure of the President or anyone.”

“It is very unlikely that the ombudsman will use his office as a stepping stone for political office, unlike our suspicion here at the DOJ that (some officials may) be using it as a stepping stone for a senatorial position,” he added.

Former BuCor chief Gerald Bantag who, like Teves, has remained at large following the filing of charges against him before the DOJ and had publicly traded barbs with the justice secretary, filed a similar complaint and asked to have his case transferred to the ombudsman.