Unilever execs ask DOJ to junk raps over concert deaths

Executives of Unilever Philippines on Friday asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to dismiss the criminal negligence and a case for violation of the Corporation Code for the death of five people during the Close-Up Forever Summer concert in Pasay City last May 21.

Rohit Jawa, Unilever Philippines Chairman and CEO and currently the Executive Vice President for Operations in South East Asia submitted his counter-affidavit via the Philippine consul while the other officials submitted a joint counter-affidavit namely Jesus M. Canlapan, Unilever Philippines Manager for Workplace Services and Facility Security, Alberto Curnelius Trinidad, Unilever’s Marketing Director for Close-Up, Joy Dalanon-Ocampo, Country Manager for Safety, Health and Environment; Procurement manager Melissa Alcayaga; Close-Up Assistant Brand Manager Bea Lagdameo.

According to Atty. George Aquino “we filed our counter affidavits where we informed the prosecutor and all the other parties as to what we believed is the error in their complaint, we just highlighted Unilever is an organization, its reputation speaks for itself, and it take due diligence in all of its affairs.”

“So we just wanted to highlight that to the prosecutor to shed light on what really happened in that unfortunate event last year in other words we just wanted to highlight it’s unfortunate for the families of unfortunately those who passed away but maybe in an effort to rectify the error they might be misguided for going after the wrong parties,” he added.

Jawa, on the other hand, said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) failed to provide any evidence of his alleged participation or negligence that led to the death of five people.

He said his duty involves approval of significant projects of the company including product launches.

“The [Close-Up] event was small in scale when juxtaposed to the total marketing budget of UPI. It did not also involve any product change, product launch or reformulation. For this reason, organizationally, this is a matter that does not require my approval, much less my operational participation,” Jawa said in his affidavit as he pointed out that he cannot be accused of negligence.

“Counsel informed me that since I did not have any participation in the preparation, planning or execution of the Event, it is physically, logically and legally impossible for any of my actions to be the proximate cause of the abovementioned deaths,” he said.

“The deaths of the five event attendees may have been caused by the voluntary ingestion of designer, non-scheduled drugs as the NBI complaint itself suggests. In such case, however, the voluntary ingestion of drugs is the proximate cause of their deaths,” he added.

Aside from the Unilever officials, also charged with the same offense are Michelle Suzanne Claire Quintana, Anna Kristina Doctolero, Baby Majalia Ahamadul, senior accounts manager of Activation Advertising Inc., Reginald Soriano, Eduardo Muego, John Paul Demontano, the owner and President of HypeHouse Production Corporation and Alexis Engelberto Aragon, owner of Delirium Manpower Services.

For his part, Lawyer Ariel Radovan, counsel of the families of victims Ariel Leal and Bianca Fontejon, said the NBI made an exhaustive investigation of the case that is why it took quite some time to finish the investigation.

Rodovan said that whatever doctrines of Unilever counsel that they are invoking is still to be studied and determined by the prosecuting office of the DOJ.

”On the part of the complainants and the NBI we are just to prove one thing that through negligence, through lack of skill, lack of foresight and precaution that led to the death of the decedents because of drugs that happened inside the concert malalaman natin yan pag natuloy na ang hearing sa korte kung ano ang doktrina na katanggap-tanggap,” he said adding that their duty as private prosecutors in tandem with the NBI and with the DOJ is to prove only probable cause.

Associate Prosecution Attorney Anna Noreen Devanadera set the next hearing of the case on April 24. RAM