Favors for an inmate

Ah, the wonders of technology. Soon after Facebook helped  expose the careless handling of a stranded whale shark in Boljoon town and a man’s extortion attempt on a Japanese school girl — not to mention the  St. Theresa’s College (STC) graduation controversy—Cebuanos got wind of another scandal,    courtesy of  a security video camera, this time exposing  an inmate in the Cebu provincial jail.

He is  no ordinary detainee.   Alfredo Arsenio  is on trial for the 2004 murder of  a Bombo Radyo station manager in Kalibo, Aklan province.

Arsenio was mayor of  Lezo town when he was identified by witnesses as the one who shot dead the broadcaster, a crime he denies any hand in.

To avoid having this powerful local politician influence the course of justice, he was transferred , along with the trial proceedings to Cebu.

Cebu has a reputation for being a neutral and safe venue for criminal cases involving persons accused of killling journalists.

That’s why previous   trials for the 2005 murder of columnist Marlene Garcia Esperat in Tacurong City, Mindanao and a few other media victims of harassment were moved to Cebu.  (Esperat’s case actually resulted in a conviction of the gunman and the  mastermind.)

The idea was that plucking  Arsenio out of his Aklan fiefdom would  neutralize his ability to hararass witnesses or exert undue influence.

The provincial jail in Cebu has been all too kind to the inmate.   Kid glove treatment for Arsenio  risks tarnishing Cebu’s prestige as a venue to secure justice for slain journalists.

Last Saturday, he was recorded by the jail’s closed circuit TV camera  receiving visitors in the  warden’s office.

A cooking pot, a box of goodies and plastic bags of cooked food were brought in by vistiors  for Arsenio’s birthday celebration.

Where was the warden?  He was inside enjoying the party. Saturday wasn’t even a regular vistors day for detainees.

What a brazen show of impunity.

In simple English, this means the ex-mayor  was confident he could get away with it.  The degree of brazeness is a matter of record.

Just last Feb. 8, he was caught on news cameras enjoying a hearty  lunch of beef stew in a restaurant with his lawyer and jail guard.  Handcuffs were off, and when the guard  approached to clap them back on for the ride home to the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC), Arsenio waved him away ,  so he could count the wad of money bills in his hands.

The images were aired on TV and  bannered in Cebu Daily News.  And now this birthday party.

After the expose, the warden was replaced. Arsenio didn’t suffer the worse for it.

How much clout does Arsenio have? Whatever was the price paid  for favors granted,  it’s not enough to cover the damage done to promoting a double standard of justice.