The Department of Justice. (File photo from the Philippine Daily Inquirer).
MANILA, Philippines – Who is Sister Ling of the Cannussian Sisters convent?
Sister Ling is one of the respondents in the kidnapping with serious illegal detention complaint filed by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) against former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, Fr. Albert Alejo and lawyer Jude Sabio.
During Tuesday’s preliminary investigation, CIDG’s Legal Division, Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Q. Orsos said they are reaffirming that the address of a certain Sister Ling is in Makati although they admitted they are not sure if it is a convent, as earlier mentioned in the complaint or a residential place.
“We will not be changing anymore the address, actually the place, the general place is Makati of the residence, dwelling, convent or whatever it is,” Orsos said before Assistant State Prosecutor Gino Paolo Santiago.
During the preliminary investigation last week, the prosecutor said the process server from the Department of Justice (DOJ) was not able to serve the summons on Sister Ling because there is no such convent in Makati.
Sister Ling was mentioned in the complaint where Davao-based businesswoman Guillermina Lalic Barrido was abducted and detained at the said convent in 2016 to force her to sign an affidavit against President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Paano mo masabi na kinidnap ka ngayong di mo nga alam ang mismong pangalan ng madre, yun sa kumbento, kung kinidnap ka dapat alam mo ang location ng kumbento,” Sabio told reporters.
[If you were kidnapped, you should know the name of the nun involved, the name of the convent where you were taken and its location.]
Sabio, as well as co-respondents Trillanes, have submitted their counter-affidavits asking the DOJ to dismiss the complaint filed against them.
Trillanes denied the allegations saying he first met Barrido during the preliminary investigation on the sedition case.
“It was my first time to meet her,” Trillanes told reporters. He said it was his staff who vetted Barrido to validate if indeed her allegations against the President are true.
Trillanes said aside from loopholes in the information provided by Barrido, his staff discovered that there were allegations that she has been involved in money-making schemes.
“Nung nakita ko yung feedback sa akin nung mga nag-vet sa kanya, hindi talaga pumasa. As early as 2016, hindi namin ine-entertain ito. Siguro doon sya nagalit. Duda na kami sa kwento nya,” Trillanes said.
[I got the feedback from my staff who vetted Barrido, she failed to pass their scrutiny. As early as 2016, we stopped entertaining her perhaps that was why she got angry. We doubted her story.]
He added that the date she mentioned she met him was very specific.
“We submitted a certification from the Bureau of Immigration that on the date she has mentioned we met, I was out of the country,” Trillanes said.
Sabio, on the other hand also denied the kidnapping allegations. Although he belied Barrido’s allegations that she was kidnapped, he said her statement against Duterte is legitimate.
“I worked diligently for her judicial affidavit,” adding that Barrido’s statement against the President was even supported by photographs.
“I am not aware of any arrangement for her to stay in the convent,” he said.
Fr. Alejo is expected to submit his counter-affidavit on Wednesday, after that, the case will be submitted for resolution./ac