Mangudadatu to return to witness stand

MANILA, Philippines - Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu is set to return to the witness stand Thursday for the continuation of the hearings on the massacre in which his wife, two sisters, and 55 other people were killed in 2009.

Records showed that the panel of prosecutors asked the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 221 on Sept. 13 to issue Mangudadatu a subpoena for Thursday’s proceedings in Camp Bagong Diwa.

Private prosecutor Harry Roque said Mangudadatu will testify on the trial against eight recently arraigned suspects, including Anwar Ampatuan Sr., Akmad Ampatuan and Sajid Islam Ampatuan.

Meanwhile, the prosecution also asked the court to subpoena Mangudadatu’s brother Khadafeh, an assemblyman in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The assemblyman will testify on Wednesday and Thursday to oppose a bail petition of some of the accused for the alleged death of photojournalist Reynaldo “Bebot” Momay. The 58th murder charge was only filed in September 2012.

The remains of Momay – a photojournalist for the Midland Review, a local newspaper – were never found. A team led by a forensic expert from the Commission on Human Rights recovered parts of the photojournalist’s supposed dentures.

Momay’s daughter, Reynafe, claimed in her complaint that her father had called a colleague before the incident and said that he was in the van together with other media practitioners.

At least 11 suspects have filed petitions for bail for the 58th murder charge.

Formal offer of evidence

Earlier, the prosecution panel formally offered its evidence on the bail petition of 47 suspects for the other 57 counts of murder filed against them.

The panel submitted four sets of documents each containing more than one thousand pages.

One set contains prosecution evidence opposing the bail petition of former ARMM governor Zaldy Ampatuan, while another opposes the bail petition of Sajid Islam Ampatuan, Anwar Ampatuan Sr. and Akmad “Tato” Ampatuan.

The other sets of formal offer were opposing the bail pleas of 43 other accused, including 40 members of the Philippine National Police who were tagged in the Nov. 23, 2009 massacre.

Akmad is a nephew of former Maguindanao governor Andal Ampatuan Sr., while the rest are sons of the clan patriarch.

In May, the prosecution panel also formally offered its evidence against the bail petition of Andal Sr. and 11 other suspects with similar petitions. The evidence against the bail petition of principal suspect Andal Ampatuan Jr. and Inspector Michael Macaraeg were offered in September 2012.

In January, Mangudadatu also testified during a hearing on the bail petition of Zaldy. He testified on the supposed meetings that were held to dissuade him from running against the Ampatuan clan in the 2010 elections.

On Nov. 23, 2009, Mangudadatu’s wife Genalyn led a group on the way to Shariff Aguak to file the certificate of candidacy of the then Buluan vice mayor, who was set to challenge a scion of the Ampatuan clan for the Maguindanao gubernatorial post.

More than 100 armed men allegedly stopped and killed those who were in the convoy. Thirty-two media practitioners died in the incident.

Among the initial 197 suspects tagged in the massacre were Ampatuan patriarch former Maguindanao governor Andal Sr. and his sons Zaldy, Andal Jr., Anwar Sr. and Sajid Islam.

The Ampatuans denied involvement in the incident.

More than three years after the start of the trial, 90 suspects tagged in the massacre have yet to be arrested by authorities.