WITH the revocation of the amnesty granted to Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Edgard Arevalo said court martial proceedings will proceed against the senator.
Arevalo said acting AFP chief of staff Lieutenant General Salvador Mison Jr. has already instructed the convening of a general court martial that shall hear the case of Trillanes as most of those who handled his case years back are retired.
Department of National Defense spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said police and military personnel are already in the Senate, waiting to arrest Trillanes.
Read: Police in Senate to arrest Trillanes
He said the AFP has prepared Trillanes’ detention cell at the AFP custodial center inside the AFP headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo.
As this developed, Andolong and Arevalo said they have yet to find a copy of the amnesty application that Trillanes said he filed in 2011.
“Per records, the application is not available as of the moment at hinahanap pa but if the senator decides to present that as part of his defense, we are more than welcome to see it, it will be subjected to authentication,” Andolong said.
"Hindi pa namin na-e-exert lahat ng efforts to find the records of Senator Trillanes,” he added.
Arevalo said such amnesty application is filed before the DND but the AFP is tasked to process it.
Under Proclamation 572 signed by President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday, August 31, which was published in the Manila Times on Tuesday, September 4, the amnesty granted by former President Benigno Aquino III to Trillanes was declared void ab initio (from the beginning).
Trillanes along with several other soldiers were charged over their involvement in the Oakwood Mutiny in July 2003, the Marine standoff in February 2006, and the Manila Peninsula Siege in November 2007.
These uprisings were staged against the administration of then President now House speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Trillanes was charged a non-bailable offense of coup d e’tat before the Makati Regional Trial Court.
Charges for mutiny or sedition, conduct unbecoming an officer and gentleman and all disorders and neglects to the prejudice of good order and military discipline and all conduct of a nature to bring discredit upon the military service before the military tribunal, also known as the court martial.
“The grant of amnesty to former LTSG Antonio Trillanes IV under Proclamation No. 75 is declared void ab initio because he did not comply with the minimum requirement to qualify under the amnesty proclamation,” the order reads.
Among the grounds for the revocation of the amnesty were Trillanes’ alleged failure to file an application for amnesty.
Trillanes has insisted that he had filed an application and all the cases filed in court have been dismissed.
In his privilege speech in the Senate, Trillanes presented a news video showing him as he filed his amnesty application before the DND.
The issuance of Proclamation 572 means Trillanes will be reverted back as an active military personnel following the revocation of his amnesty, Arevalo said.
“Now na na-revoke ang amnesty ab initio meaning from the beginning so he will be reverted to his status as active military personnel subject to military law and discipline,” he said.
“Wala na siya sa military dahil nga nagkaroon ng amnesty but since yun ay nirerevoke, at ang effectivity n’ya is since the beginning ibig sabihin it is as if he did not retire from the service, he did not file any application for amnesty kaya balik siya sa military custody para ituloy ang kanyang proceedings... The fact that he was reverted to military custody and he regains his military personality then kung ano magiging ruling ng court martial that would apply to him,” he added.
Asked for the status of the charges filed against Trillanes before the court martial, Arevalo said they have yet to get an update on it. (SunStar Philippines)