Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo travel hangs on legal, medical, political factors

President Benigno Aquino III is worried that there could be a “political fallout” for him if he allows his predecessor, Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, to go abroad for medical treatment and she does not return to face prosecution for alleged corruption and electoral fraud.

This is the question that is ostensibly weighing on Mr. Aquino who has to make the final decision on Arroyo’s travel plans after the former President was placed on the immigration watch list, effectively barring her from leaving, by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima.

According to Budget Secretary Florencio Abad Jr., a senior political adviser of Mr. Aquino, the issue hinges on three considerations—medical, legal and political.

Arroyo, who wants to seek alternative stem cell therapy abroad for her hyperparathyroidism, has written to De Lima asking to be cleared for travel, promising to return as scheduled in the travel authority—for a six-week period up to Dec. 15 covering five countries, Germany, the United States, Singapore, Italy and Spain—approved by the secretary general of the House of Representatives.

Three considerations

Abad said, “The medical question is: What is GMA’s state of health? Is it serious enough to warrant travelling abroad for further treatment?”

“The legal question is: Is there legal basis to restrict GMA’s right to travel and her right to seek medical treatment from doctors/hospitals of her choice? Do the two cases filed against her—electoral sabotage and graft—provide that basis?

“And finally political: What political fallout will befall the President in case he allows her to leave and then later on the government is unable to bring her back home to face trial on cases filed against her. Remember, the backdrop here is you have a people thirsting to see closure and justice on these cases that have brought them suffering,” said Abad.

(Several plunder and electoral fraud complaints have been filed against Arroyo with the justice department and the Ombudsman’s office but not a single case or charge in court. Some of these are in the preliminary investigation stage.)

According to Abad, Mr. Aquino has yet to make up his mind but when he does make a decision, his Cabinet and political allies will have to follow, whatever their personal opinion or inclinations.

“The President, in consultation with medical experts, his legal team, key Cabinet officials and his political allies, is still weighing these considerations. Once he makes up his mind, the LP and his political allies will stand by him. Our personal views on this issue will take a back seat,” he said.

Malacañang earlier declared that it was leaving the decision on Arroyo up to De Lima. But the ball has now landed on Mr. Aquino’s desk, after De Lima and Health Secretary Enrique Ona announced what amounted to their own decision on the matter.

Last Thursday, De Lima deferred issuing an allow-departure order to Arroyo, claiming that the former President seemed to be all right and there was no immediate need for her to leave. She made this decision after Ona reported that Arroyo was in good condition after making a personal visit to assess her condition.

Arroyo’s spokesperson, Elena Bautista-Horn, has denounced Ona, saying he was not qualified to offer an expert opinion on Arroyo—who is suffering from a mineral deficiency in her bones arising from two corrective surgeries in September—because he was not a bone specialist. (Ona is a nephrologist and kidney transplant surgeon who used to head the National Kidney and Transplant Institute.)

Arroyo will not beg

Horn said that Arroyo has no plans to “beg” Mr. Aquino for permission to travel.

She reiterated that Arroyo’s health was worsening, saying the former President has to take 25 different sets of medications a day aside from the daily hormonal injections for her parathyroid glands.

Horn also challenged De Lima to substantiate her claim that the Arroyos had other plans in their travel itinerary aside from seeking alternative stem cell therapy.

Arroyo had included 14 members in her travel entourage, including her alleged “bag lady” Remedios Poblador, in her original application to travel but only four were approved—her husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo, a bodyguard, a nurse and Horn.

Her political enemies said her destinations of choice—of which only the US has an extradition treaty with the Philippines—indicated that she intended to remain out of the country to evade the charges against her.

Issue is right to travel

For House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman, neither De Lima’s department nor Malacañang has the right to curtail Arroyo’s right to travel as Arroyo’s leaving did not involve national security, public safety or public health.

These are the only three issues that would restrict a citizen’s right to travel which is enshrined in the Constitution’s Bill of Rights, he said.

“It is not a question of compassion, accommodation or even health condition but a matter of the constitutional right to travel which former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo must exercise without any impediment or restraint,” he said.

Lagman stressed that the justice department’s watch list order was not enough to deprive Arroyo of the right to travel because it “is not equivalent to a hold-departure order which only the proper court can issue.”

“There is no criminal information filed in any court or tribunal against former President Arroyo to justify the delay or denial of her right to fully exercise her freedom to travel,” said Lagman.

Lagman has filed House Bill No. 5111, “An Act Upholding the Constitutional Right to Travel and Granting to the Proper Court the Exclusive Jurisdiction to Issue Hold Departure Orders” to comply with Congress’ constitutional mandate to enact a law guaranteeing a person’s right to travel.

File charges now

A House party-list member, fearing that Arroyo would take her case to the Supreme Court, urged De Lima and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales to immediately file even just one case in court against Arroyo and get a hold-departure order from a court.

“They should now throw the book at GMA. Some of these complaints have been languishing with our prosecutors for a year,” said Teodoro Casiño (Bayan Muna), who, with others, has filed half a dozen plunder complaints against Arroyo.

“The Aquino administration is risking another slap in the face once the former President brings her case to the Supreme Court,” he said.

Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, a member of the ruling Liberal Party, suggested that Arroyo wait for the results of the preliminary investigation of the complaints against her before going abroad since, he said, her disease was not life-threatening.

“If there is no finding of probable cause, then no problem. If there is finding of probable cause then she should have herself arraigned and allow the court to acquire jurisdiction over her. She can then apply for medical treatment abroad. Hopefully, she will be much better then and we should all pray for that,” said Abaya, stressing that this was his personal opinion.

2 bishops for allowing travel

Two Catholic bishops, who were Arroyo’s uncompromising critics, said the former President should be allowed to travel abroad to seek medical treatment.

Retired Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said that since Arroyo has not been charged in court, she retains her constitutional right to travel.

“If her sickness becomes fatal, De Lima gets all the blame and Arroyo becomes a kind of martyr,” said Cruz.

“If she does not come back, then her flight is a sign of guilt,” he said.

Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said Arroyo should be allowed to travel if the treatment is available only abroad, “but there should be a guarantee for her return.” With a report from Jerome Aning