Former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
THE SUPREME Court has stopped the plunder trial of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for 30 days, ordering the antigraft court to comment on her petition questioning court resolutions that denied her right to seek a ruling on the sufficiency of evidence against her.
In an en banc session Tuesday, the high court issued a 30-day status quo ante order on proceedings against Arroyo, now a Pampanga representative who has been detained at the Veterans Memorial Center in Quezon City since Oct. 4, 2012 for allegedly misusing P365.997 million of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) intelligence funds.
The court ordered the antigraft court to comment within 10 days on Arroyo鈥檚 petition which argued that the prosecution鈥檚 evidence had failed to establish the crime of plunder.
Grave abuse
In a 124-page petition for certiorari filed on Oct. 15, the Arroyo camp asked the high court to set aside 鈥渇or having been issued with grave abuse of discretion鈥� the Sandiganbayan鈥檚 resolutions denying her demurrer to evidence, a pleading that sought to dismiss the plunder charges against her on account of insufficiency of evidence.
The antigraft court denied Arroyo鈥檚 first attempt to get the court to rule on the sufficiency of the evidence on April 6 of this year, and then her reconsideration plea on Sept. 10. This prompted her to elevate the matter to the high court.
Arroyo鈥檚 plea said the antigraft court鈥檚 rejection of the demurrer to evidence would eventually lead to Arroyo鈥檚 conviction for plunder.
鈥淎s an obvious consequence of the above, denial of petitioner Arroyo鈥檚 demurrer to evidence [would lead to] to no less than convicting her on the basis of a disjointed reading of the crime of plunder as defined,鈥� read the petition.
It said the Sandiganbayan had effectively 鈥渞edefined鈥� the offense of plunder in finding the former President liable 鈥渙n the basis solely of her authorization of the release of confidential/intelligence funds from the PSCO鈥檚 accounts.鈥�
It argued that Arroyo was being tried and detained for 鈥渁 crime that does not exist in law, and consequently a blatant deprivation of liberty without due process of law.鈥�
No evidence
鈥淣ot a single testimony of the 21 witnesses of the prosecution was offered鈥� to prove that petitioner amassed, accumulated or acquired even a single peso of the alleged ill-gotten wealth,鈥� the petition said.
鈥淣o evidence whatsoever was offered by the prosecution, and not any is on record in the case, to show that petitioner Arroyo ever got hold, received or utilized a single peso of the alleged ill-gotten wealth,鈥� it read.
It said there was 鈥渁bsolutely no justification鈥� in law or in evidence that would prove that Arroyo was the 鈥渕astermind of a conspiracy,鈥� or that she had made 鈥渁 series of withdrawals as cash advances鈥� from the PCSO鈥檚 confidential/intelligence funds.
Malaca帽ang Tuesday declined to comment on the status quo ante order issued by the Supreme Court in favor of Arroyo.
鈥淚 need to know first what is the content of their (SC) order to understand it and be able to give a reasonable commentary,鈥� Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. told reporters in Filipino. With a report from Nikko Dizon