Gloria Arroyo plea vs plunder trial reassigned to PNoy appointee Leonen
The pending petition of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo contesting a plunder case against her has been transferred for the second time – now landing on the desk of newly appointed Supreme Court Associate Justice Marvic Leonen.
In an 80-page petition filed last October, Arroyo asked the high court to stop the Sandiganbayan from hearing a plunder case that stemmed from the alleged diversion of over P300M of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
The petition was originally raffled off to Arroyo-appointee Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta, who inhibited himself from the case out of delicadeza.
Peralta's brother-in-law, Cornelio Aldon, stood as the legal counsel for former PCSO board of director Raymundo Roquero, a co-accused in the case, during the Senate investigation on the alleged fund mess.
The case was re-raffled and was re-assigned to Associate Justice Estela Perlas-Bernabe, one of Aquino's four appointees to the Supreme Court.
During last Tuesday's en banc session however, the justices unloaded their case loads and handed over some cases to newly appointed Leoneon, so that all 15 magistrates would have equal share of cases being handled.
Arroyo's petition was among the cases that Bernabe decided to give up and transfer to Leonen, who was appointed by Aquino last November 21.
Before ascending to the Supreme Court, Leonen successfully forged a framework agreement for peace with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.
In her petition for certiorari and prohibition, Arroyo requested the high court to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) and a writ of preliminary injunction to stop the plunder trial at the Sandiganbayan.
Named respondents in the case were the Sandiganbayan First Division and the Office of the Ombudsman, which filed the case last July.
The complaint was filed with the Ombudsman by Jaime Regalario, former Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel and former Army general Danilo Lim on July 26, 2011.
In her petition, Mrs. Arroyo accused the Sandiganbayan of grave abuse of discretion when it "acted with precipitate haste" by issuing two resolutions (October 3 and 4) denying her motion for judicial determination of probable cause.
The 15-member Supreme Court is currently led by President Benigno Aquino III's appointee Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, but is still dominated in numbers by 11 Arroyo appointees.
The Sandiganbayan had recently allowed Mrs. Arroyo, who continues to suffer from spine problems, to remain under hospital arrest at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center with certain conditions.
Mrs. Arroyo, who now represents Pampanga's second legislative district at the House of Representatives, has been confined at the VMMC since October 4. — LBG, GMA News
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