THE Supreme Court (SC) en banc yesterday voted, 8-4, to allow detained Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile to bail out.
Enrile was under “hospital arrest” at the National Police General Hospital in Camp Crame in connection with the pork barrel mess. The senator has been in detention for over a year.
The cost for Enrile’s temporary liberty is P1 million. Enrile, a lawyer, argued that the evidence against him was weak, and that he was not a flight risk. Those who dissented were Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and Associate Justices Estela Perlas-Bernabe and Marvic Leonen.
Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza inhibited himself from the case as he is the former solicitor general. Enrile is facing a case of plunder and graft before the Sandiganbayan for his alleged misuse of the priority development assistance fund (PDAF).
SC spokesman Theodore Te said, “The Court granted the petition for bail of petitioner Juan Ponce Enrile, subject to the terms and conditions to be specified by the Court in its Order which will be forthcoming.” (pna)
Disclaimer
Mindanao Gold Star Daily holds the copyrights of all articles and photos in perpetuity. Any unauthorized reproduction in any platform, electronic and hardcopy, shall be liable for copyright infringement under the Intellectual Property Rights Law of the Philippines.
