Lawyers of GMA, Bedol attack credibility of witnesses

MANILA, Philippines - Lawyers of former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and former Maguindanao election officer Lintang Bedol attacked yesterday the credibility of two prosecution witnesses during bail hearings on the electoral sabotage charges in connection with alleged cheating in the 2007 midterm elections.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) prosecutor Juana Valesa presented Juan Vergel Soriano, a Comelec engineer, to testify on the statistics that showed the voters’ turnout in Maguindanao, which drastically increased by 74.71 percent during the 2004 elections, and an increase of 96.3 percent in the 2007 polls, but declined by 67.9 percent in the 2010 elections.

Another witness Ritz Villana, a former receiving officer of the National Board of Canvassers (NBC), also testified that she received the ballot box from Maguindanao that was later set aside by the NBC because of alleged cheating in the senatorial elections.

Soriano and Villana were the second and third witnesses presented by the Comelec in the ongoing hearing on the petitions for bail filed separately by Arroyo, her co-accused Bedol and former Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan Sr.

The lawyers of the three accused have joined forces in the court deliberations to discredit the prosecution witnesses.

During the hearing yesterday, Benjamin Santos and Reynaldo Princesa – lawyers of Arroyo and Bedol, respectively – questioned the relevance of the testimonies of Soriano on the alleged cheating in the Maguindanao elections in 2007.

Santos told Judge Jesus Mupas of the Pasay City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 112 that the testimony of Soriano on the statistics of voters turnout is not part of the allegations in the complaint sheet so it is not relevant.

“There were no allegation on the voters’ turnout, the allegation was focused on tampering and switching (of votes),” Santos said.

Princesa noted the testimony of the witness that the voters’ turnout declined in the 2010 elections because of the Maguindanao massacre that resulted in the death of 58 people, mostly local journalists.

As to the testimony of Villena, the two lawyers also claimed that her testimony is irrelevant because she had no personal knowledge of the alleged cheating.

Under cross-examination, the witness admitted that she only received a ballot box and not election documents that were presented by the prosecution as evidence.

Mupas, despite the strong opposition of defense lawyers, allowed the witnesses to testify after Valesa promised to present more witnesses that would corroborate the theory that the accused had conspired.

The court set the continuation of the bail hearings on April 12.

The first witness, lawyer Nelia Oreo, former chairman of the municipal board of canvassers of Pagalungan, Maguindanao said as far as she could recall there was no tampering of votes when the special board of canvassers that she headed completed the canvassing of votes from Pagalungan.

The prosecutors presented Oreo in the earlier bail hearing to prove that they have a strong case of electoral sabotage against the three accused. 

GMA needs hospital confinement

A medical team from the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City where Arroyo is detained has recommended to the Pasay City RTC the continued confinement and daily therapy of the accused.

Arroyo’s physician Antonio Sison reported to Judge Mupas the former president needs the continued therapy for her bone illness known as “lumbar spiral stenosis,” characterized by recurring lower back pains.

The doctor said Arroyo needs extensive physical therapy and she should wear a neck brace.

Felda Domingo, RTC Branch 112 spokesperson, said the medical report was in compliance with a court order to the doctors to submit a monthly report on the medical condition of the patient.

The court sought the medical report after the Comelec filed a motion for the immediate transfer of Arroyo from the VMMC to a regular jail in Metro Manila.

The report also included Arroyo’s hospital bills that have reached more than P120,000 in the past three months.

Mupas has earlier granted the motion of Arroyo to be allowed to extend by one hour her sunbathing session at VMMC to address her vitamin D deficiency that is complicating her bone illness.