Muntinlupa court allows De Lima to post bail

FILE PHOTO: Former Senator Leila De Lima. Philippine Daily Inquirer/Lyn Rillon

MANILA, Philippines — The Muntinlupa City Regional Trial has granted detained former senator Leila de Lima’s bail plea for her remaining drug case, Atty. Boni Tacardon said.

“Motions for reconsideration of the concerned accused are granted. Thus, the Order of the Court dated June 07, 2023, is reconsidered. Consequently, accused De Lima, Bucayu, Dayan, Sanchez and Dera are allowed to post bail in the amount of P300,000 each,” read the court’s order signed by Presiding Judge Gener M. Gito.

De Lima’s co-accused are former Bureau of Corrections chief Franklin Jesus Bucayu, de Lima’s former aide Ronnie Dayan, de Lima’s former security aide Joenel Sanchez and Jad Dera.

State prosecutors accused de Lima and Bucayu of tolerating the illegal drug trade inside the national penitentiary from May 2013 to May 2015 when she was justice secretary.

De Lima has repeatedly denied the accusations, claiming she was a victim of a political witchhunt by then-president Rodrigo Duterte.

She said she earned the ire of Duterte due to her vocal stance against his administration’s bloody crackdown on illegal drugs and human rights violations.

Three drug charges have been filed against de Lima and she has already won two–through demurrer of evidence in February 2021 and the other through lack of merit of the prosecution’s case in May this year.

De Lima has been in detention at Camp Crame since February 2017.