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Lagman urges Marcos Jr. to free De Lima

Philippines | National

Lagman urges Marcos Jr. to free De Lima

By Seth Cabanban

Human rights lawyer and Albay 1st district Rep. Edcel Lagman has called on President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to release outgoing Senator Leila De Lima from jail.

Rep. Edcel Lagman (File Photo)

De Lima has been detained since February 2017 on alleged, “trumped-up,” drug charges.

“Liberating Sen. Leila de Lima from an odious incarceration soon after President-elect Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. assumes office is the litmus test of his sense of justice and adherence to the rule of law. De Lima has been in prison for more than five years since February 24, 2017 on perceived trumped-up drug charges,” Lagman said in a statement on Thursday, June 16.

He says that the next President can direct the courts to desist prosecution against De Lima.

“Since the President ultimately controls the prosecution of criminal cases, the public prosecutors must be directed to desist from further prosecuting de Lima for want of competent and credible evidence,” he continued.

“It must be recalled that one of the three drug cases filed against de Lima had already been dismissed on February 17, 2021 for insufficiency of evidence,” said Lagman.

Read more here: https://mb.com.ph/2022/02/25/only-courts-can-order-de-limas-release-doj/

“Moreover, the major prosecution witnesses in the two other pending cases have voluntarily recanted for having been coerced to testify and the other witnesses have failed to pin down de Lima,” Lagman added.

Last April, alleged drug lord Kerwin Espinosa recanted his testimonies in which he alleged that he had been linked with De Lima in the illegal drug trade.

Read more here: https://mb.com.ph/2022/04/28/kerwin-espinosa-recants-testimonies-vs-detained-sen-de-lima-on-drugs-charges/

Meanwhile, former officer-in-chief of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Rafael Ragos similarly recanted his testimony against De Lima alleging that he had delivered P10-m in drug money to the detained Senator and her aide, Ronnie Dayan.

Read more here:

https://mb.com.ph/2022/05/02/de-lima-on-retraction-of-ex-bucor-oic-ragos-5-years-too-late-but-still-welcome/

https://mb.com.ph/2022/05/13/ronnie-dayan-de-limas-former-aide-denies-getting-p10-m-drug-money-from-ragos/

“While de Lima languishes in jail, the prosecution is grasping at barren straws. The new administration will embark on the right foot by freeing de Lima from an unwarranted and unjust imprisonment,” the Albay solon concluded.

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Bongbong Marcos

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