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Calida to Trillanes: Apologize for calling me a thief or I'll sue you for libel


Solicitor General Jose Calida (from Interaksyon/ right photo is the screen-capped image of the statement posted on Facebook



Solicitor General Jose Calida on Thursday, September 27, hits back at Senator Antonio Trillanes for accusing him of stealing his amnesty application documents and threatened that he will file charges against the senator.

In a statement, Calida said that he would be “constrained to file a criminal case for libel plus damages” unless Trillanes expresses his sincere apology.

“Mr. Trillanes maliciously branded me as a thief, which I’m not.” Calida also said

Calida said that the senator’s rationality seemed to have deserted him. In the first place, “what is there to steal when Lt. Col. Thea Joan N. Andrade, Chief of the Discipline, Law and Order Division of the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (J1) who is the custodian of the records issued a Certification that there is no available copy of Trillanes’ application for amnesty in the records?” the Solgen said

Secondly, Calida said he “never entered the offices of the J1 or the Personnel Division of the AFP at Camp Aguinaldo.”

“So how could I “steal” documents kept there?” the solicitor general added

Calida also cited that it seemed Mr. Trillanes “did not bother to read with perspicacity the Proclamation No. 572 series of 2018, concerning the revocation of the DND Ad Hoc Committee Resolution No. 2 (#1) dated January 31, 2011 insofar as it granted amnesty to him.”

This statement of the solicitor general rooted from an earlier rant of Trillanes in a press conference where he alleged Calida of stealing the important documents that are crucial factor in the legislator's arrest the other day.*

"Nananawagan ako sa leadership ng Armed Forces (of the Philippines) and Department of National Defense..., alam nila na nag-apply ako, alam nila na mayroon akong dokumento, bakit hinayaan nilang kuhanin ito at iwala ni Mr. Calida?" Trillanes said

The said missing document was said to be the main reason cited by Judge Elmo Alameda of the Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 150 in granting the government's plea to issue the arrest warrant and hold departure order against Trillanes over his rebellion case back in 2011.


Below is the complete Facebook post released by the Office of the Solicitor General posted through Carlo de Leon:


OFFICIAL STATEMENT FROM THE OFFICE OF THE SOLICITOR GENERAL

The putschist Mr. Trillanes ranted to the media yesterday that I “stole” his amnesty application document. In effect, Mr. Trillanes maliciously branded me as a thief, which I’m not.

Obviously, Mr. Trillanes’ rationality (assuming he had one) has deserted him. First, what is there to steal when Lt. Col. Thea Joan N. Andrade, Chief of the Discipline, Law and Order Division of the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (J1) who is the custodian of the records issued a Certification that there is no available copy of Trillanes’ application for amnesty in the records? Second, I have never entered the offices of the J1 or the Personnel Division of the AFP at Camp Aguinaldo so how could I “steal” documents kept there?*

Apparently, Mr. Trillanes did not bother to read with perspicacity the Proclamation No. 572 series of 2018, concerning the revocation of the DND Ad Hoc Committee Resolution No. 2 (#1) dated January 31, 2011 insofar as it granted amnesty to him. The revocation of Trillanes’ amnesty is anchored on at least two (2) minimum requirements which were not complied with, to wit: 1) Trillanes did not file an Official Amnesty Application Form and the sworn statement or narration of his participation in the Oakwood and Manila Peninsula incidents which was required to be annexed to his application; 2) Trillanes did not express his guilt for the crimes which he committed, i.e., Oakwood Coup d’Etat and the Manila Peninsula rebellion when he stated during an interview on January 5, 2011 that “they were not admitting guilt to the mutiny and coup d’etat charges lodged against them both in the civil and military courts” and “I would like to qualify that we did not admit to the charge of coup d’etat or anything na i-finile sa amin kasi we believe na hindi iyon and nararapat na i-charge sa amin.”

If we follow the convoluted logic of Mr. Trillanes, he’s saying that he did not commit the crimes that were covered by the amnesty. If that is what he really means, then he has no need for amnesty because when one applies for amnesty he must expressly admit his guilt to the crimes he committed. Moreover, DND-AC Circular No. 1 further requires the applicants to recant all previous statements inconsistent with the requirement of admission of that guilt which he never did.

Unless Mr. Trillanes expresses his sincere apology for calling me a thief, I shall be constrained to file a criminal case for libel plus damages against him.

Sources: Carlo de Leon and The Daily Sentry

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