Court clears IFI bishop, NDFP exec of grenade possession rap

OZAMIZ CITY — After more than seven years, the Regional Trial Court (RTC) here has acquitted the prelate of Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) and a consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) of illegal possession of explosives charge.

In a 33-page ruling promulgated on July 2, RTC Branch 15 Presiding Judge Grace Yulo said the prosecution failed to prove the guilt beyond reasonable doubt of IFI Bishop Carlo Morales and NDFP consultant Rommel Salinas.

“The prosecution failed to present any evidence concerning the negative fact that the accused had no license or permit to own or possess the firearm or explosive,” read part of Yulo’s decision. She added that such a fact could be established by the testimony or certification of a representative of the Philippine National Police Firearms and Explosives Unit.

“We are happy with the acquittal, though it took seven long years for the wheels of justice to grind fine,” said lawyer Virgilio Ponciano Ocaya of the Union of People’s Lawyers in Mindanao (UPLM), who assisted Salinas in the case.

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Lawyer Ephraim Cortez, president of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, said the succession of judges in RTC Branch 15 might have partly contributed to the delay in the resolution of the case.

Cortez, who assisted the IFI bishop, said the case was first handled by Presiding Judge Edmundo Pintac who was murdered in October 2018. Judge Soliver Peras was designated acting presiding judge until August 2021 when Judge Michael Ajoc assumed office. It was only starting with the reception of defense evidence in December 2021 when Judge Yulo took over and eventually decided on the case.

“While the decision vindicates our clients, much is yet to be done since many more innocent people who are victims of political persecution are still languishing in jail and facing trumped-up charges similar to these dismissed cases,” Ocaya said.

‘Injustice’

Morales and Salinas were traveling when arrested at a checkpoint in Ozamiz City on May 11, 2017. After their arrest, they were detained and charged with possession of explosives after a grenade was supposedly found inside their vehicle.

The bishop, however, was granted bail on March 14, 2018.

His arrest ignited outrage from the religious communities not only in the country but also abroad. Groups called the filing of the trumped-up charge a “big injustice to the person and to the Church that expressed solidarity in the struggle of the people and gave support to the peace talks” between the government and NDFP.

Human rights advocates have long decried the arrests and demanded the release also of Salinas, who is protected under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees signed by both the government and the NDFP.

The recent acquittal prompted the UPLM to call on the government to pursue peace negotiations with the NDFP.

“With this hard-fought legal victory, the government should also seriously consider formally resuming the stalled peace talks with the NDFP as soon as possible to address the root causes of the rebellion in our country,” urged Antonio Azarcon, UPLM chair. —GERMELINA LACORTE