The Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 150 on Monday, January 7, reaffirmed its decision to reopen the rebellion case of Senator Antonio Trillanes IV as it denied the senator’s plea to reverse the ruling.
In a six-page decision dated December 18 of last year, Makati RTC Judge Elmo Alameda explained that the senator failed to prove that he applied for amnesty and admitted his guilt over the incident.
“Sen. Trillanes was not able to prove through testimonial and documentary evidence that he filed his application for amnesty nor expressly admitted his guilt in the application form for the crime he committed during the Manila Peninsula incident which are the minimum requirements set forth under Proclamation No. 75,” Alameda said as reported by The Philippine Daily Inquirer.
The judge noted that the plea had been assessed “thoroughly and excessively” by the regional trial court and was found to be “not novel.” The same court also released the arrest warrant and travel ban for the senator in September 2018. Trillanes posted a bail worth P200,000.
Trillanes’ camp declined to comment as they await the official copy of the ruling. However, his legal counsel Reynaldo Robles said that they “will consider the possibility of appealing or questioning the ruling before the higher court.”
Palace to Trillanes: Law is catching up on him
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo expressed his sentiments on the ruling noting that Trillanes is now facing the consequences of his actions. The spokesman further stated that it is the senator’s undoing.
“Senator Trillanes’ comeuppance is finally knocking at his door, and he can only blame himself for the situation he embroiled himself in for he created his own quagmire,” Panelo stated.
“He may have succeeded in evading his accountability before the law but the law is now catching up on him. It should dawn on the departing senator and to others who are prone to challenge the majesty of the law that it is no respecter of anyone regardless of the political and social status status of the violator,” he added.
The presidential legal counsel also called the senator an “ingrate and renegade military officer.” He also used the senator’s situation to warn those who plan to criticize the administration and rebel against the government.
“The Palace respects this decision of the trial court in finding sufficient grounds to deny Senator Trillanes’ motion for reconsideration. While currently at liberty after posting bail. Trillanes must still come to grips with the criminal transgressions he committed as an ingrate and renegade military officer,” he added.
“What’s happening to him should strike fear in the hearts of those who after being financed by the taxpayers’ money for their education will plot against the government that nurtured them as well as those who use their political power to shield them from accountability as they malign and sow intrigues against persons they dislike even inciting the citizenry to hate duly constituted authorities,” Panelo added.
Trillanes lost his appeal a week after leaving for Europe for a series of engagements.