Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — The administration lacks evidence to prosecute Senator Leila De Lima over illegal drug charges, and she must be released immediately, her lawyer, a former solicitor-general told the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) failed to reconcile the nature of the illegal drug cases it filed against De Lima, said Florin Hilbay, a former solicitor general in his opening remarks in the High Court to hear the senator’s petition to dismiss her warrant of arrest.
“Make no mistake, Your Honors, by the official conflicting, incompatible theories of the DOJ and the OSG, we now have evidence that the government doesn’t have a case,” Hilbay said.
Hilbay, the lead counsel of De Lima, highlighted the “stunning discrepancy” between the allegations of the Justice Department and solicitor general’s office.
“While the DOJ alleges in its defective Information that petitioner is an actual drug lord — a master of puppets — the OSG is now saying petitioner is a theoretical drug lord — a drug lord in words and not by deed — one who merely conspired to trade in drugs with alleged co-conspirators but actually never did so,” he argued.
Arrested over wrong crime?
On February 17, the Department of Justice filed the drug charges against De Lima for her alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison while she was still Justice Secretary from 2010 to 2015. She was charged with violating the Comprehensive Drugs Act of 2002.
But Hilbay said that if the allegations are true, De Lima should not have been charged with drug trading, but with “direct bribery,” under Article 210 of the Revised Penal Code.
He noted direct bribery and “protecting or coddling” a person who sells or trades illegal drugs are both bailable offenses.
De Lima has been detained without bail at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center since February 24.
Hilbay also said that when Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 204 Judge Juanita Guerrero ordered the arrest of De Lima, she found a probable cause for the wrong case.
Citing this reason, and four other flaws in the DOJ and OSG’s cases, he said the three drug charges against De Lima should be immediately dropped and she should be released from detention without further delay.
“You can consider the OSG’s disagreement with the DOJ about the actual nature of the crime as a peremptory justification to dismiss the case,” Hilbay said.
Related: OSG to SC: Dismiss De Lima’s petition to junk arrest
Hilbay: Govt made four moot attempts to jail De Lima
Hilbay said the government had to resort to four questionable actions just to put De Lima behind bars.
He said the DOJ “conscripted” high-profile Bilibid inmates to testify — with their qualifications questionable as they were convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude.
He said DOJ disregarded its duty to refer the case to the Ombudsman. Hilbay also said the DOJ filed the cases before the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court instead of the Sandiganbayan — which violates the exclusive original jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan.
Hilbay also said Judge Guerrero had to find probable cause and issue a warrant of arrest despite the jurisdictional errors raised in De Lima’s motion to quash.
To close his statement, Hilbay addressed the 15 Supreme Court Justices: “The world is watching… Let’s do the right thing.”
