CA ruling no bearing on De Lima proclamation - Comelec

Metro Manila, Philippines - A Court of Appeals (CA) ruling nullifying the acquittal of former Senator Leila de Lima in one of her drug cases has no bearing on the proclamation of Mamamayang Liberal (ML) party-list group, of which she is the first nominee, as a winner in the polls, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Friday, May 16.

The appellate court, citing grave abuse of discretion on the part of the judge, ordered the Mandaluyong trial court to re-try the case and issue a proper ruling based on the recanted statement of the former Bureau of Corrections chief.

“Ang decision ng Court of Appeals ay subject sa motion for reconsideration. Kung hindi man, pwedeng maitaas sa Supreme Court,” said Comelec Chairman George Garcia.

[Translation: The Court of Appeals decision is subject to a motion for reconsideration. If not, it could be haled to the Supreme Court.]

“So, parang hindi po tama na magsu-suspend tayo ng isang winning party-list o nominee niya dahil lang po du’n sa bagay na ‘yun at dahil lang sa desisyon na hindi naman final,” he added.

[Translation: So, it would be incorrect for us to suspend a winning party-list’s nominee just because of a decision that is not final.]

The party-list proclamation has been set for Monday, May 19.

De Lima, a staunch critic of President Rodrigo Duterte, has been cleared in all three drug charges filed against her during his administration. She called the cases “fabricated.”

She was detained for almost seven years before her release in 2023.

The CA decision stemmed from a case review sought by Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra, the justice chief during Duterte’s term.