Planters Product backs cyber libel case vs former DA chief

MANILA, Philippines — Planters Products Inc. (PPI) said it would fully cooperate with government prosecutors pursuing cyber libel and defamation charges against former agriculture secretary Leonardo Montemayor.

PPI, who has been involved in the alleged illegal importation of rice from Vietnam, said the case stemmed from what it described as false and damaging statements made by Montemayor against PPI.

The company’s legal counsel and spokesperson Czarina Quintanilla-Raz clarified that its suit against the former DA chief was not persecution, noting that the issue “concerned truth and falsehood.”

“How can a former secretary of agriculture, who should fully understand the distinction between government regulation and private corporate operations, repeatedly advance accusations that seemingly ignore that very distinction?” she asked.

The company also accused Montemayor of using the legal proceedings to win public sympathy instead of addressing whether his allegations were backed by facts and evidence.

Quintanilla-Raz said unfounded and defamatory accusations carry legal consequences regardless of a person’s former position in government.

“Freedom of expression does not give anyone the right to make defamatory statements or present unsupported allegations as established facts,” Quintanilla-Raz said.

Montemayor, who also chairs the farmers’ group, the Federation of Free Farmers (FFF), has accused PPI over its importation of about 22,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam.

He also accused PPI of being a government-owned and controlled corporation, which it clarifies is not the case as private individuals own its shares.

Quintanilla-Raz stressed that PPI is a private corporation and separate from the DA.

Montemayor did not immediately respond to a message seeking comments.

In an earlier statement, however, the FFF and the MAGSASAKA Partylist argued that there was nothing libelous or defamatory in their claims against PPI, noting that it has “become clear that defending the Filipino farmer is now a dangerous endeavor.”

“Facing fabricated charges and standing before the courts for the sake of our agricultural workers is no longer a source of intimidation; it is a badge of honor,” the groups said.

Montemayor faces one count of cyber libel and two counts of oral defamation after the Makati City Prosecutor’s Office found prima facie evidence and reasonable certainty of conviction.

After the charges were filed, the Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 148 ordered Montemayor’s arrest on Oct. 26. He subsequently posted bail and is set to be arraigned on Nov. 24.