Should the DOJ dismiss the charges against the Ampatuans?

I agree with you on that, I think it is pretty much premature to dismiss the case on DOJ level and the manner the case was dismissed has some kind of a hastily done and a few person was given noticed until the decision was made public.

That is what the DOJ secretary has done. His resolution does not really mean that Zaldy and Akmad are free. A motion has to be presented in court and it is the court that will rule whether their inclusion was proper. Yes, the resolution was hastily issued. Plus, I did not like the two-faced way that the Acting Secretary did it. He met with the victims, claimed that there was still no resolution, and then released one the following day. Wow, talk about cowardice! He did not even have the guts to tell the victims to their face his decision. He could not have arrived at such a decision in just one day. Truly appalling!

I agree, there is something more to this whole situation. It sounds as if the Acting Secretary is laying the basis for the acquittal of the entire Ampatuan clan. As I understand the case, the one thing that links the Ampatuans to this case is the statement of the lone survivor of the massacre. His resolution dismissing the case against the Ampatuan casted doubts on the truthfulness of the entire affidavit and of the witness itself. So if the witness is not believable, the case will be thrown out. He has just sabotaged the government's case against the Ampatuans!

Exactly! Arrogant is the right word! And to claim that he has the blessing of Malacanang because the Palace is silent on the matter, and silence, he says is confirmation. Not a great way to end his career. I am sure that he will be removed by he next president.

And the way he tell the media about his decision is simply so arrogant .Telling the fiscals that if they are the secretary then they can bend his decision but sorry because as of now hes the acting secretary.Is that the way a secretary of justice should be acting?Makes me wonder if theres really something fishy going on here...All of a sudden i dont trust the DOJ anymore...

Very nice point of view in there. Why do Zaldy and Akmad deserve his personal attention? All other witness that point to seeing those person were all said to be lying as per Sec. Agra that is really astonishing that he only based his evidence on the flight manifest and cellphone billing pointing that the two were out of the place when it happened.

Yes, I think there was a news article about the Ampatuans being his client. I remembered he made the distinction that he was the lawyer for the K4 coalition and not the Ampatuans personally. That's a mighty fine line of distinction to make. As a lawyer, he knows that he has to avoid any appearance of impropriety. I do not know why he had to personally issue the resolution when he has a lot of subordinates to review the case. Why do Zaldy and Akmad deserve his personal attention? There's a question he ought to answer.

There again is the flaw in his logic. If the witness was lying as to seeing Zaldy and Akmad, doesn't that mean that this witness is unreliable as to all the things he said? And if that is the case, why pursue the case against the Ampatuans using an unreliable witness? Let's say that the court does the right thing and deny the dismissal. Doubts are now cast on the credibility of the prosecution's case. The Acting Secretary just threw the case to the dogs!

I hear you. It is really hard to be objective when it comes to the Maguindanao Massacre. The audacity and brazenness of the crime makes you dizzy just thinking how they could stomach what they have done. Is Maguindanao hell on earth? I could not look at footages for a long time because it made me sick to the stomach. I cannot imagine anyone standing there, firing at all the innocent people and say straight to the camera that he is innocent.

Totally! The cellphone bill shows at best, where the cellphone was, and not necessarily the owner of the cellphone. What if Zaldy and Akmad were only trying to establish alibis and they send their minions to Davao with their phones? What if the ticket was purchased but was never bought? Even assuming that there was indeed no conspiracy, the evidence presented are not irrefutable. What makes their evidence better than the affidavit which positively identified them? The Acting Secretary has a lot to answer to the people.

Thank you, that's my point exactly. The Acting Secretary ruled that there was no evidence of conspiracy and so he ruled on the alibi. Hello, the witness clearly said that he was there the day before the massacre listening to the instructions of Andal to kill the Mangudadatu and whoever happened to be there. He may have been in Davao, but Davao is just a few hours away. They travel all the time between these places. I just cannot believe that the DOJ preempted the court with his resolution.

I know it can be both be challenging and frustrating to live in this country. I too became apathetic for a while, but I hate to admit it, if we all just resign as Filipinos, who will be left to run this country? It is disgusting the way that justice is often trampled upon. But I believe in the saying that "all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing."

Are you saying that the could should be the one to determine whether the two Amaptuans are innocent or guilty? What really got to me was the report that the day before he released the resolution, he met and told the victims that he had not finished reviewing the case and that as soon as he was done, he would inform them of his action. Less than 24 hours later, he issued the resolution! He is even faster than Jack Bauer. Maybe he should replace Kiefer Sutherland.

You are right. The weapons that were found in their property is an entirely different issue that must also be resolved. I was also shocked by the firepower that they stored in their compound. What shocked me more was that it had government markings. Draw your own conclusions from that. I agree that the court should rise above everyone, and show that it can be truly impartial. The issue really is simple: should the two Ampatuans be tried with the others? I have great faith in Judge Solis, after she is a woman!

The problem really lies in the appreciation of facts and the application of the law. Acting Secretary Agra did not come from prosecution arm unlike Chief State Prosecutor Arellano. The issue of probable cause lies within the province of the Department of Justice. The problem here is that Agra outranks Arellano. I was just surprised that Sec. Agra chose to do this alone even if he perceived it to be the right decision. It reeks of something, just not justice.

I have to agree with all your angry emoticons. Yes, the Acting Secretary of InJustice needs to face the bar of public attention. I wanted to throw an egg at him when he was being interviewed and he said that he has done nothing wrong. Nothing wrong? Huh, that remains to be seen. But something stupid? Yes.

The problem really is that the Department of Justice does not have the power to rule on alibis. The issue is whether the positive identification by one of the witnesses should be disbelieved. The proper thing to do is of course first determine whether there was conspiracy between the Ampatuans. In order to prove conspiracy, the indictment relied on the testimony of one of the witnesses that the two were there. The positive assertion of the witness is prima facie evidence that they committed a crime as principals by inducement. Agra's reasoning is that since they were not there, therefore, they are not part of the conspiracy. If that is the case, then why was Andal indicted as a conspirator when he clearly was not there? His reasoning is just full of holes, and I do not know how he could, in good conscience, defend his fallacious reasoning. Because of his resolution, doubts have been case on the reputation of Agra. People are speculating whether he was paid or whether there was an order coming from somewhere to release the two. If neither of the two happened, does it mean that he does not his job? All of the above are frightening. It is time that Malacanang steps in.