Court resets hearing for De Lima ‘disobedience’ case

Sen. Leila de Lima. (File photo by MARIANNE BERMUDEZ / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

A Quezon City court has reset the first hearing on the “disobedience” case against detained Sen. Leila de Lima over alleged irregularities in the judicial affidavit filed by the prosecution.

Judge Ludmila de Pio Lim of the Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 34 ordered on Friday the deferral of the presentation of the first prosecution witness after discrepancies in the copies of the affidavit were seen between the document filed before the court and the one furnished to De Lima’s camp.

The affidavit contained the testimony of House justice committee chief Rep. Reynaldo Umali, who was present in the hearing as the first to take the witness stand.

Umali was also one of the complainants in the case against De Lima, whom they accused of inducing her former bodyguard and driver Ronnie Dayan to snub the Congressional inquiry on the drug trade in the New Bilibid Prison.

BACKSTORY: De Lima charged for ‘disobedience’ to House

Lawyer Teddy Rigoroso, legal counsel of the female lawmaker, expressed opposition to the continuation of the proceedings, noting that there seemed to be “two different species” of documents signed on the same date.

However, the prosecution, represented by lawyer Albert Angelo D.R. Villalon, insisted that the corrections were mere typographical errors.

The court said it would move to resolve the issue before the new trial date set on July 14.

WATCH: Sen. Leila de Lima called cockiness, abusiveness and arrogance to power "the new normal" in public officials. pic.twitter.com/F6gfHk4pYk

— Jhesset O. Enano (@JhessetEnano) June 9, 2017