Prosecution asks new judge handling De Lima's last drug case to inhibit

MANILA, Philippines — State prosecutors have asked the Muntinlupa court judge handling the recently re-raffled drug case against former Sen. Leila De Lima—her last pending case—to inhibit himself from the trial.

Department of Justice prosecutors filed a Motion for Voluntary Inhibition seeking the recusal of Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 204 Judge Abraham Joseph Alcantara “to avoid being misunderstood, his reputation for probity and objectivity preserved, and his impartiality to the administration of justice is served.”

The said case was re-raffled from Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256 after Judge Romeo Buenaventura inhibited from the case, following motions filed by former De Lima aides, Ronnie Dayan and Joenel Sanchez, and former corrections director Franklin Bucayu.

In moving for Alcantara’s inhibition, state prosecutors cited a “near identical case” involving De Lima and Dayan where they were acquitted by Branch 204.

In that case, the court dismissed the case against De Lima following the recantation of prosecution star witness Rafael Ragos, former corrections chief, who initially said he delivered, through Dayan, P10 million to De Lima who was then justice secretary. He retracted his testimony in 2021.

But the prosecution panel raised that they moved that the “subsequent recantation of a witness is not sufficient to vitiate his original testimony voluntarily and solemnly given numerous occasions in media, Congress, and the courts of law.”

The prosecution has noted this in their motion for reconsideration on the De Lima acquittal that remains pending before the court.

“Having adversely decided against the People in the previous Criminal Case No. 17-165, the undersigned Panel of Prosecutors cannot help but be apprehensive that the Honorable Presiding Judge will carry over his perceptions to the instant case,” they said.

To note, De Lima in her last case, is accused of receiving around P70 million from alleged drug trade collection at the New Bilibid Prison from 2013 to 2015.

Prosecutors added that they are moving for the judge’s inhibition to “maintain and preserve the trust and faith of the party-litigants.”

De Lima is battling her last drug charge after she was cleared of two cases. The former lawmaker won in her first case when she challenged the sufficiency of prosecution evidence against her, while she won her second case on the ground of reasonable doubt.

The former senator already sought the court's reconsideration on the dismissal of her bail plea in her remaining drug case.

De Lima has been in detention since February 2017, and has long maintained her innocence in what she said are politically-motivated cases filed against her.