‘Batasan Four’ now free

We challenge Topacio to donate the bounty he supposedly raised against the progressive leaders to the evacuees hit by the torrential rains in NCR and other areas.

The former lawmakers dubbed as the “Batasan Four” yesterday hailed the junking of the double murder cases filed against them by a Nueva Ecija court.

Nueva Ecija RTC Branch 28 Judge Trese Wenceslao dropped the double murder charges against National Anti-Poverty Commission Convenor Liza Maza and former congressmen Satur Ocampo, Rafael Mariano and Teddy Casiño, citing insufficient evidence to prove their involvement in the murder of three farmer leaders belonging to a rival group between 2001 and 2004.

The cases were filed against the four in 2006 and the respondents questioned the actions of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) before the High Tribunal.

The Supreme Court sent the case back to the court in Palayan City in February 2017.

But Judge Evelyn Turla of the Palayan RTC Branch 40 on 11 July issued a warrant of arrest for Maza, Ocampo, Casiño and Mariano. Maza was a former Gabriela party-list representative.

Wenceslao favored the motion of the Leftist leaders to dismiss the cases.

Zarate dubbed the revival of the cases as pure harassment, including the P1-million bounty placed over their heads by lawyer Ferdinand Topacio.

“Those behind these harassment charges should be held accountable. Topacio and his minions should answer for unnecessarily putting the security and lives of the Makabayan 4 in jeopardy. At the very least, we challenge him to donate the bounty he supposedly raised against the progressive leaders to the evacuees hit by the torrential rains in NCR and other areas,” Zarate said.

The StaffBorn at the turn of this century, the Daily Tribune immediately took hardcore stance on issues, bearing a slogan that speaks of its character.