Estrada won’t be parting ways with Revilla just yet

Senator Jinggoy Estrada. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—“Sexy” may look forward to more sparring sessions with his kosa (fellow detainee) “Pogi.”

The Sandiganbayan on Thursday threw out for lack of merit the petition of state prosecutors to move detained Sen. Jinggoy Estrada from his current detention cell in Camp Crame, Quezon City, to a regular lockup in Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, Taguig City.

Citing security concerns and the rights of an accused, the antigraft court’s Fifth Division ruled that transferring Estrada to the prison facility managed by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) would endanger not only the senator’s safety, but of the other detainees and jail guards as well.

“As regards the prayer to transfer Sen. Estrada to the BJMP facility… this court finds the instant motion to be without merit,” the court said in a 17-page resolution penned by Associate Justice Roland Jurado, chair of the division.

“While the utilitarian or protective theory of our criminal justice system protects the society from actual and potential wrongdoers, our Constitution and laws enacted likewise put a protection on the rights of an accused, whether a convicted or a detained individual,” it said.

Associate Justices Alexander Gesmundo and Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta concurred with the ruling.

Estrada, who was reportedly identified in Napoles’ records as alias Sexy, is being held in one of the detention rooms of the PNP Custodial Center.

His 30-square-meter cell is adjacent to the detention room of his bosom buddy and fellow actor-politician, Sen. Bong Revilla, whose supposed codename in Napoles’ records was ‘Pogi.’