Newsman’s council ban lifted

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- Despite the absence of Youth Council president Councilor Brenden Kim Quintos during the regular council session Tuesday, the ban on journalist Jimmy Laking was lifted.

Quintos said his motion during last week’s session was concurred by the entire legislative body and the formality of the motion was merely being awaited.

By virtue of Quintos’ motion, the three-year-old declaration of the veteran journalist was lifted pending the signing of the formal resolution.

Laking was declared persona non grata by the Council in December 2009, banning him from entering the local council since. The council alleged Laking breeched responsible journalism and ethics.

However, the resolution does not in any way affect the ongoing case against his colleagues in the local council as proceedings for the graft charges are still in motion.

The move is aimed to bring peace in the Council as well as the warring camps of Laking and the local legislative body.

Lawyer for the legislative body Miller Quintin said the move of Quintos has yet to be presented in the courts. “We still don’t know the effect of this move; we will have to present this in courts and know the purpose of the filing of the resolution.”

Quintin said mediation proceedings between the two camps are yet to end and both legal counsels for Laking and the Council members are not involved in this phase of the case.

Quintin said when a notice for Judicial Dispute Resolution (JDR) has been issued by the courts, this would signal an end to mediation talks between the two parties and legal action in the courts will commence anew.

The JDR process, which requires a judge to become a mediator, is aimed to declog the courts of pending cases aiming to peacefully settle cases if possible through mediation proceedings. If the process cannot make the two warring parties agree, the courts will have no choice but proceed with the legal process.