A LOCAL media organization here yesterday joined other media groups in putting into question the furlough granted to one of the principal accused of the November 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre.
In a statement, the Cagayan de Oro Press Club (COPC) has expressed concern over a local court's decision that allowed former Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) governor Zaldy Ampatuan to leave detention to attend his daughter's wedding at a hotel in Pasay City, Tuesday, August 21,
"Due to the gravity of the crime that he and a host of other suspects, we think he should not have been given the special treatment as we implore our courts to hasten the decision of the cases that the perpetrators are facing so that justice will finally be served,"the Cocpo said.
Ampatuan is one of the principal suspects in the killing of 58 people, including 32 media practitioners in Maguindanao last 2009.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) earlier said in a statement that the prosecution owes the public a "full account and credible explanation".
"Surely, his camp would have had to petition the court well in advance. Where were the state prosecutors in all this? Did they contest the petition? Perhaps, more importantly, did they even inform the families of the victims and other parties to the case?"the group asked.
The NUJP said that while it understands the parent's desire to be present at an important milestone in the life of a child, it however stressed that the crime of which Ampatuan was accused of is of such a heinous nature.
"Almost nine years after the rampage, no one has yet been convicted. Yet a principal accused, Sajid Ampatuan, was granted bail. That and now this, we feel, gives us and the victims' families more than enough cause to worry about whether we can truly expect justice for this most grievous of crimes," the NUJP said.
"We all know that most people accused of lesser offenses almost never get to enjoy a privilege as that granted Zaldy Ampatuan. What made him an exception to the rule," it added.