Judge miffed by journos’ comments

TWO Cebu journalists were ordered by a judge to explain why they shouldn’t be penalized for issuing statements that may have dishonored the court.

Leo Lastimosa, ABS-CBN anchor and The Freeman columnist, and editor Pachico Seares of Sun.Star Cebu were told to explain in five days why they should not be cited in indirect contempt of court.

The order was issued by Cebu City Regional Trial Court Judge Raphael Yrastorza of Branch 14, who was offended by reports that the guilty verdict he rendered in the libel case against Lastimosa was biased in favor of the original complainant former Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia.

Lastimosa said he hasn’t received a copy of the order yet but confirmed that his lawyer Celso Espinosa received it yesterday afternoon.

“He’ll ask for a postponement because he has another case to attend that day,” Lastimosa told Cebu Daily News.

Lastimosa said his lawyer and that of Seares would discuss with each other how to respond.

Last Aug. 30, the judge found Lastimosa guilty of libel for a newspaper column “Arangkada” that he wrote in 2007 titled “Doling Kawatan”

Although Lastimosa said his Cebuano column about a hot-tempered fish vendor who abused her power as a barangay captain was fiction, the judge said it clearly referred to Garcia because of many previous columns where Lastimosa criticized the Cebu governor.

Lastimosa was ordered to pay a P6,000 fine and P2 million in damages to Garcia.

Lastimosa is contesting the ruling before the Court of Appeals.

The Cebu-Citizens Press Council and Cebu Media Lawyers Association earlier issued a joint statement saying they were “saddened” by the verdict, but that the setback was temporary and can be apealed to the CA and Supreme Court “where in many cases in the past the right to free comment was upheld.” /Reporter Ador Vincent Mayol