Wednesday, November 05, 2008 Bishop seeks hasty move on habeas corpus plea
A SENIOR member of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) urged the Court of Appeals (CA) for an immediate and judicious ruling on the petition for habeas corpus filed by the son of former agriculture undersecretary Jocelyn "Joc Joc" Bolante last Monday.
"I am hoping the appellate court would resolve the case fast -- for the peace of all," said Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said.
He appealed to the CA justices, who would hear the petition, to take up the case with special consideration on what would be for the common good.
The prelate added that the petition was filed for the former DA official to evade the Senate investigation on the P728 million fertilizer fund scam.
"After going away so far and so long, Mr. Bolante will continue to do everything just so he can avoid testifying before the Senate and be grilled of what he knows in the fertilizer fund mess," Cruz said.
Bolante's son, Owen, filed the petition before the appellate court to compel the Senate to release his father from its custody.
The former government official is still confined at the St. Luke's Medical Center, where he was brought after arriving from the US.
Bolante is being tagged as the mastermind of the scam that allegedly led to the diversion of the public fund to the campaign kitty of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo for the 2004 elections.
CBCP spokesperson Monsignor Pedro Quitorio echoed the statement of CBCP President Angel Lagdameo urging Bolante to reveal his knowledge on the fund scam. "He should tell the truth so that he can help our country." (FP/Sunnex)
