De Lima's last pending case re-raffled off to new Muntinlupa judge
MANILA, Philippines — The last pending drug case against former Sen. Leila De Lima has been raffled off to a new court in Muntinlupa, after two judges inhibited from the proceedings in past weeks.
Lawyer Boni Tacardon, from De Lima’s legal team, told reporters on Wednesday that the third case against De Lima will now be handled by Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 206, where Presiding Judge Gener Gito sits.
The case was raffled off on July 10.
No other details on the next trial date have been made public.
De Lima’s appeal on her rejected bail petition is pending before the court.
This last case is keeping the former senator in detention, for more than seven years now, amid acquittal in two other drug charges.
In 2019, Gito was the acting presiding judge of Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256, during which he allowed De Lima to visit her ailing mother in Camarines Sur. A year later, he was relieved of his designation in Branch 256.
As presiding judge of Muntinlupa RTC Branch 206, Gito in 2022 handled and dismissed an indirect contempt plea filed against De Lima and her lawyers.
The re-raffle was done after Muntinlupa RTC Branch 204 Judge Abraham Alcantara inhibited from the case following a motion by state prosecutors. Alcantara said he recused himself from the proceedings “to put to rest any questions against his credibility, integrity and fairness.”
The case was raffled off to Alcantara’s sala after Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256 Judge Romeo Buenaventura granted motions for inhibition filed by De Lima’s former aides Ronnie Dayan and Joenel Sanchez, and former corrections official Franklin Jesus Bucayu.
De Lima’s co-accused had asked Buenaventura to stop handling the case after learning the judge is the brother of lawyer Emmanuel Buenaventura, supposedly the former counsel of the late Rep. Reynaldo Umali.
Umali was the chairperson of the House of Representatives justice panel when it was conducting hearings into the alleged drug trade in the New Bilibid Prison that supposedly involved De Lima.
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