Angeles prosecutor drops consul’s cyberlibel raps vs Tribune journos

CAUGHT IN RIVALRY In this photo taken last January, Consul General Elmer Cato who is based in Milan, Italy, filed 17 counts of cyberlibel charges against the publisher, editors and reporters of Daily Tribune, its sister publication Dyaryo Tirada and related social media accounts for alleged defamatory stories he believed arose from business rivalry among Filipino-owned immigration service agencies in Milan. The cases have been dismissed by the Angeles City Prosecutor’s Office for lack of jurisdiction. —Tonette T. Orejas

ANGELES CITY, PAMPANGA, Philippines — Citing lack of jurisdiction and probable cause, Angeles City prosecutor Oliver Garcia, in a decision last month, has dismissed the cyberlibel complaint filed by Consul General Elmer Cato against the publisher and several editors and reporters of the Manila-based Daily Tribune last January.

“We are inclined to agree with the observation that this office lacks jurisdiction in view of recent jurisprudential developments,” said Garcia, adding that the “rule is that venue in criminal cases is jurisdictional.”

“Criminal action must be commenced in the place where the crime was committed, or in any place where one of the essential ingredients or elements thereof occurred,” Garcia further said in a resolution dated July 12, a copy of which was released on Friday at the request of the Inquirer.

READ: PH envoy to Milan sues Manila newspaper for cyber libel

Cato, who filed the complaint in this city, his official residence, claimed in his P10-million defamation suit that he was subjected to what he called to be “fake news” involving 17 counts of supposed violation of Republic Act No. 10175 (Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012) concerning libel under the Revised Penal Code.

The respondents to the complaint were Willie Fernandez, the newspaper’s publisher; and journalists Gigie Arcilla, Chito Lozada, Dinah Ventura, Gibbs Cadiz, John Henry Dodson, Allan Hernandez, Jom Garner, Rey Bancod, Manny Angeles, Rose Novenario, Gilmor Leaño, Alvin Murcia, @TEB, @BT, Vanessa Antonio, Enrique Catilo and Apple Cabasis.

Cato, who is currently posted in Milan, Italy, said he was falsely accused of coddling an immigration consultancy firm that is under investigation for supposedly defrauding Filipinos seeking jobs in Italy.

Uphill battle

Garcia, in his order, said that while his office could not make a definitive ruling on the merits of the case due to its lack of jurisdiction, “the pleadings and arguments on record suggest that the complainant, as a public official, faces an uphill battle in establishing the existence of libel.”

According to the prosecutor, the “constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech and of the press, and the public interest in the uninhibited discussion of matters of public concern, tilt the balance heavily in favor of the respondents. The complainant would do well to remember that as a public servant, he must be open to criticism and scrutiny, and must not be too quick to cry libel at every unflattering remark or commentary.”

Business rivalry

Cato, a journalist before joining the foreign service, said the 92 complaints of aggravated fraud that had been filed against Alpha Assistenza before the Office of the Public Prosecutor in Milan were proof that the Consulate was not sleeping on the job.

He said the Tribune and its sister publication, Dyaryo Tirada, based its repeated allegations on the statements made by Antonio, Catilo and Cabasis, who were among the more than 200 applicants in the Philippines who paid Alpha Assistenza more than P20 million for what they said were nonexistent jobs in Italy.

Cato believed he was dragged into the issue because of business rivalry among Filipino-owned manning agencies in Milan, following his plan to regulate these companies to stop the exorbitant fees being charged for services rendered to Filipino clients.