Malacañang advised the public to be wary of deception amid the flak the government has been getting after the court convicted Rappler CEO Maria Ressa of cyber libel.
“Alam niyo po, nalulungkot ako. Bagama’t hindi pa po tapos itong pandemiya, hetong si Maria Ressa eh talagang nais na niyang guluhin ang ating sistema dito sa Pilipinas. Nais niyang mawalan ng tiwala sa ating hudikatura ang ating taumbayan. Huwag po tayong magpapalinlang (I am sad. While the pandemic has not yet ended, Maria Ressa wants to mess up the system in the Philippines. She wants our citizens to lose trust in our judiciary. Let us not be deceived),” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque urged.
“Huwag po tayong magpalihis sa isyu. Ang isyu pa rin po hanggang ngayon ay ang karapatang mabuhay amidst the threat of this COVID-19 pandemic (Let us not be swayed from the issue. Our right to live remains the issue amidst the threat of this COVID-19 pandemic.),” Roque continued.
The statement of the United States which expressed concern on the matter and called for the “resolution of the case in a way that reinforces the U.S. and Philippines’ long shared commitment to freedom of expression” has reached Roque.
The presidential spokesperson defended how the institutions in the country are working and pointed out that the decision of the court is right.
“Kung sa tingin po nila na mali ang desisyon, umapela po sila. Pero hindi po dapat siraan ang ating institusyon (If they think the decision is wrong, they can appeal but not discredit our institution).
In a separate statement, Communication Secretary Martian Andanar stated that “linking President Duterte to the conviction is a blatant disregard of the fact that the Judiciary is separate from the Executive Branch and is a disrespect to the independence and impartiality of the Regional Trial Court following the facts of the case.”
“The decision of Judge Rainelda Estacio-Montesa of the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 46 on the case was not an attack on press freedom nor on freedom of speech but an adherence to the rule of law and due process prescribed in our democratic constitution,” Andanar added. – Report from Mela Lesmoras
