Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) — The camp of Leila de Lima will again push for her temporary liberty after key witness Rafael Ragos ended his testimony against the former senator.
De Lima will file a supplemental motion for bail this month, according to her lawyer Boni Tacardon.
“Malaking bagay ang pagbawi ni (former National Bureau of Investigation) deputy director Ragos ng kanyang salaysay dahil lagi naman naming sinasabi ‘yung katotohanan, lalabas at lalabas sa dulo at mukhang ‘yung dulo na ‘yun ay heto na,” Tacardon told reporters on Friday.
[Translation: Deputy director Ragos’ recantation is a big deal for us because we’ve always said we are telling the truth, and it will come out in the end, and this looks like the end.]
De Lima and Ragos attended the continuation of the hearing for the former senator’s drug case at the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court, where the former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief affirmed his recantation.
“Ngayong ito ay nabawi na at kung ito ay paniniwalaan ng ating hukuman, eh sa palagay ng defense team ay wala ng ebidensya,” Tacardon said. “At sana tuluy-tuloy na rin at mabigyan muna ng pansamantalang laya si Sen. Leila de Lima sa kasong ito habang naghahanda naman kami sa susunod naming hakbang, ‘yun nga pagpapa-dismiss tuluyan ng kasong ito.”
[Translation: Now that the testimony has been recanted and if the court believes this, the defense team thinks there is no evidence against her. We hope that Sen. Leila de Lima will be given provisional liberty while we are preparing for our next step, and that is to have the case dismissed.]
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Ragos tags other personalities
Ragos reiterated that he was coerced to implicate De Lima in the illegal drug trade inside the national penitentiary.
The former BuCor chief — according to Tacardon — strongly denied he personally delivered drug money to De Lima in 2012, when she was justice secretary.
Tacardon also said Ragos identified other people who \”coerced\” and \”pressured\” him to testify against the former senator.
Aside from former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre, Tacardon said Ragos mentioned Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta, two PAO lawyers, and former National Bureau Investigation Director Dante Gierran.
In a statement, PAO said this was \”false and misleading.\”
“Mr. Ragos never made such [a] statement against Chief Acosta when he was presented in court today, 10 February 2023, and previously in other hearings — as a witness in one of the cases filed against former Sen. De Lima,” the statement read.
It added that the participation of the two PAO lawyers in the execution of Ragos’ two affidavits was limited to \”merely reducing his statements verbatim in writing and administering his oath.\”
CNN Philippines has reached out to Gierran and will update this story once he responds.
Aguirre has already denied coercing Ragos.
De Lima, one of the vocal critics of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, was arrested and detained on Feb. 24, 2017 over drug-related charges.
So far, she has been acquitted in one of her three drug cases.
