Judge defers Andal Sr.'s arraignment

MANILA, Philippines - The judge handling the trial of the Maguindanao massacre case deferred yesterday the scheduled arraignment of massacre suspect and clan patriarch Andal Ampatuan Sr.

Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes of Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 211 said she will issue an order “not less than Friday” regarding the arraignment of not just Ampatuan Sr. but of all the suspects.

Expectations were high that the clan patriarch will finally face the court nearly two years since the crime took place after Ampatuan Sr.’s lawyer, Sigrid Fortun, filed a voluntary motion for arraignment for his client and asked the court if it may be done on May 25.

The deferment dismayed incumbent Maguindanao Gov. Esmael Mangudadatu – whose wife and sisters were among the 58 victims – and four of his brothers, who flew in from the province just to witness the event.

”I’ve been praying as early as 4 a.m. that (the arraignment) pushes through because he is not just an ordinary suspect but one of the masterminds,” Mangudadatu told reporters.

“And it’s not only us who are waiting for this day but also those outside the country,” he added.

Aside from Mangudadatu, the relatives of other victims and even foreign news correspondents flocked to Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City in anticipation of the patriarch’s appearance.

But after Solis-Reyes’s announcement, the spectators left the court one by one. Prosecution lawyers, meanwhile, gave various opinions on the judge’s move. For panel head Pete Medalle, he explained that it is still up to the court to decide whether to grant Ampatuan Sr.’s request.

He said it doesn’t mean that the court will automatically say yes just because it was a voluntary motion. Mangudadatu lawyer Nena Santos echoed Medalle’s statement, saying she sees no problem with the decision because maybe Solis-Reyes does “not want to give special treatment” to Ampatuan Sr.

Prosecutor Nestor Lazaro, however, disagrees. “For us it is illogical that Andal Sr was not arraigned today the request already came from him,” he told The STAR.

Lazaro added that he does not see any legal implication had the judge decided to grant the patriarch’s motion since his arraignment is “already overdue.” He said he even called the court last Monday just to remind them of Ampatuan Sr.’s motion.

“What if they escape? Wala kaming hawak sa kanila. They won’t be able to undergo trial because trial in absentia will not apply,” he said.

Fortun said he does not know why the arraignment did not push through. He refused to elaborate on why he suddenly asked for Ampatuan Sr.’s arraignment, but said he is just using one of the legal options available to them. “I can’t tell you our legal strategy,” he said.

Asked if this should cause the prosecution to be on the alert, Fortun quipped, “No, they should be complacent because they think we are stupid.”