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THE
possibility of a presidential pardon for the nine
military officers who were convicted on a coup case by
the Regional Trial Court in Makati Tuesday is not remote
especially if Malacañang considers the admission of
their wrongdoing, the Armed Forces chief of staff said
Wednesday.
“I am
not closing everything. The presidential pardon is in
the realm of possibility,” said Gen. Hermogenes Esperon
Jr., Armed Forces chief of staff.
Some
quarters said it was Esperon who convinced the nine
officers to admit to the crime of coup ’d état, a move
that went to naught, however, after the court still
imposed the harshest penalty on two core leaders of the
Magdalo by sentencing them to life imprisonment.
The
court disregarded the guilty pleas of Army Capts.
Gerardo Gambala and Milo Maestrecampo and imposed on
them the maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment.
Their
seven other colleagues who also entered the same plea
got six to 12 years in jail for being mere members of
the group.
Esperon
said he could not speculate on the possibility of a
pardon by President Arroyo because it was solely the
prerogative of the President.
He,
however, said he would come up with his own
recommendations if asked to.
Three
legislators opposed the immediate granting of pardon to
the nine convicted Magdalo mutineers.
However,
opposition spokesman Adel Tamano said the conviction of
the soldiers “will not ensure that others will not
indulge in so-called military adventurism.”
Tamano
said “until the military institutes genuine reforms to
address corruption, then the cause of the unrest of
younger, idealistic soldiers will remain and continue
[to push them] to do extreme acts.”
He
added: “While we strongly disagree with unconstitutional
means to seek change, the conviction of the Magdalo
soldiers should not blind us to the validity of their
complaints and the idealism that animated their cause.”
Bagong
Lakas ng Nueva Ecija (Balane) Rep. Eduardo Nonato Joson
and Liberal Party Rep. Alfonso Umali Jr. of Oriental
Mindoro in a statement said the failed mutineers should
first serve their sentence “substantially” before
granting them pardon.
“I don’t
think they should be granted pardon immediately after
the promulgation of the case, or it will reek of a
scripted clemency. Let there be substantial serving of
the sentence,” said Joson.
Umali,
on the other hand, hopes that the officers pleaded
guilty voluntarily and not as a tactic to gain early
freedom.
“People
like me would like to believe that the not-guilty plea
they had entered was a voluntary manifestation of
remorse, not a tactic to win early freedom,” said Umali.
Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr.
of Cavite said forgiveness must come only after
repentance and after a person suffers the consequences
of his act.
Speaker
Prospero Nograles urged all sectors to “allow justice to
take its normal course” in the wake of the verdict.
“Criticisms and insinuations that mock our justice
system are uncalled for and a great disservice to our
democratic system.”
Nograles
said the stiff prison terms against the failed mutineers
should discourage future military adventurism.
At the
same time, Nograles cited the courage of the military
officers for accepting their guilt and squarely facing
the consequences of their actions.
President Arroyo’s chief counsel said Wednesday that the
guilty verdict on nine Magdalo soldiers could strengthen
the government’s rebellion case against Sen. Antonio
Trillanes IV as they are part of the same case.
Asked
whether the verdict may affect the senator’s case, Chief
Presidential Counsel Sergio Apostol said, “Yes, because
it’s a conspiracy. They’re part of the same case.…It
would really have an effect. The others admitted that
there was a conspiracy, they admitted the coup.”
He said
the admission of the nine other Magdalo soldiers, who
have been sentenced to six to 40-years’ imprisonment,
would play a “big factor” as it “could be considered as
a strong evidence against him also.”
“The
evidence is strong, that’s why his accomplices have been
convicted. I don’t want to preempt the judge but more or
less that may also happen to Trillanes … but trial is
gong on and he can still make a guilty plea, but we are
not counting on it,” Apostol said.
On
whether the guilty plea made by the nine soldiers could
play to their favor should they seek presidential
pardon, Apostol said, “Yes, but right now I have not
heard anything about this. They are qualified naman
for pardon just like any other [convict], tingnan
natin.”
Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Renato Miranda, former Marines
commandant, was returned to his detention cell at the
headquarters of the 2nd Infantry Division in Tanay,
Rizal, Wednesday.
Miranda
was taken out of his cell at the Intelligence Services
of the Armed Forces (Isafp), headquarters in
Camp Aguinaldo,
Quezon City, at around 8 a.m.
Miranda
and 27 other officers, who were facing court martial for
allegedly plotting a coup in 2006, were transferred to
the Isafp headquarters two months ago from Tanay in
order for them to have easier access to medical
services. (With F. Marasigan) |
