Lawyer Reynaldo Robles on Tuesday called on President Rodrigo Duterte and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to respect the Supreme Court and not arrest Senator Antonio Trillanes IV.
“Since the Supreme Court has made a public proclamation, taking note of the word of the President and the AFP, and if something untoward happens, yung tao at ang Korte Suprema na siguro ang bahala,” Robles told the reporters at the Senate on Tuesday.
The SC denied the petition of Trillanes for a temporary restraining order on the implementation of Proclamation 572, revoking the amnesty granted to the senator by the previous administration.
The SC noted that President Rodrigo Duterte had clearly stated that the senator would not be arrested without a warrant of arrest.
READ: Trillanes fails to get relief from SC
Robles said: “Sa tingin namin, ngayon, kinikilala mismo ng SC na may commitment na ganoon yung Presidente, siguro walang dahilan para labagin iyon ng PNP (Philippine National Police) o ng AFP.”
“Sa tingin namin, as a lawyer, I think that should be enough assurances and that should be taken note by the PNP and the AFP na Supreme Court na mismo ang nagsasabi na hindi niyo dapat gawin yan,” he added.
Trillanes to stay in Senate
However, Robles said Trillanes will still stay in the Senate on the possibility that the promise not to have the senator arrested without a warrant would be broken.
“There are instances in the past that promises have been broken and things were taken back, minsan sasabihin na joke lang ,[which is why] we do not allow the senator [Trillanes] to go home,” Robles said.
Meanwhile, Trillanes’ camp still welcomed the decision of the SC and branded it as ‘one of the best outcomes’ they could hope for even though the high court did not issue a TRO on the implementation of Proclamation 572.
“We are gratified with the decision of the Supreme Court,” Robles said. “I think it is one of the best outcomes that we could hope for under the circumstances.” /vvp
READ: ‘It could’ve been worse’ – Trillanes camp