Gerry Ortega murder case. INQUIRER PHOTO
The National Union of Journalist in the Philippines (NUJP) on Tuesday welcomed the news on the arrest of the Reyes brothers, but noted that the government has done little in pursuing justice for the killing of environmentalist and hard-hitting broadcaster Gerry Ortega.
Recalling how the brothers were able to flee in 2012 “with false travel papers and the help of crooked immigration officials,” NUJP said the arrest of former Palawan governor Joel Reyes and his brother Mario was a “cause for much concern.”
“Concern because we all remember the circumstances in which they were able to flee the country in March 2012, just before warrants for their arrest were issued apparently, with false travel papers and the help of crooked immigration officials after what can only be assumed was a tip-off from even more crooked officials higher up in government about their impending arrest,” NUJP said in a statement.
The Philippine Embassy in Thailand has confirmed that the Reyes brothers are in custody of the Thai police and are set for deportation.
READ: Reyes brothers in Ortega killing arrested in Thailand | We want Reyes brothers in handcuffs, say Ortegas | PH embassy in Thailand confirms arrest of Reyes brothers
NUJP also criticized the administration of President Benigno Aquino III for supposedly claiming that it has contributed to the arrest of the Reyes brothers in Thailand.
“What does seem obvious at this point is that, for all its rhetoric of wanting Joel and Mario Reyes arrested as much as anyone else seeking justice for Gerry Ortega, this government has done little, if anything, to bring this about,” NUJP said.
“We are sorry to prick his bubble again but President Aquino is way off base for saying, as quoted by Palace mouthpiece Edwin Lacierda, the capture of the brothers ‘proves the resolve of the government to go after the fugitives,’” it added.
Lamenting the government’s supposed inaction and apathy on cases of media killings and human-rights violations, NUJP said it is not yet too late for the administration to shun its alleged “shameless credit-grabbing rhetorics” by making sure that the ongoing trial in the Palawan Regional Trial Court will continue.
“We’ve had enough of the administration according special treatment to favored and influential individuals facing criminal charges. The Reyes brothers in the last five years had brazenly trampled upon our legal system and exposed the weaknesses and corruptibility of our enforcement systems, bribing their way out of the country and eluding arrest in a touristy hideaway until the Thai authorities had to do the work for us. It’s time for government to say it’s payback time, in concrete deeds and real words,” NUJP said. Yuji Vincent Gonzales/TVJ