DOJ to withdraw motion vs. De Lima acquittal

The Department of Justice (DOJ) will withdraw the motion filed by its panel of prosecutors seeking to overturn the acquittal of former Senator and now party-list Representative Leila De Lima before the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla confirmed the decision, saying he had spoken with Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon on the matter.

The motion for reconsideration was submitted after the court issued an amended decision upholding De Lima’s acquittal on charges of conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading.

De Lima, for her part, welcomed the DOJ’s decision and praised Remulla for what she described as restoring “sense and order to the unethical actuations” of the prosecutors involved in the case.

While she expressed relief over the withdrawal of the motion, De Lima also urged the DOJ to hold the prosecutors accountable.

“The question remains as to what should be done with these prosecutors who have abused our justice system for far too long? I call on the Justice Department to properly investigate and sanction them,” she said.

She added: “If they are allowed to get away scot-free with what they have done, no one is safe. They should be made to account for what they have done.”

De Lima also agreed with Remulla’s assessment that some of the prosecutors involved were pursuing a “political agenda.”

She added that these actions are “seriously compromising the DOJ and the NPS under Remulla’s watch.”