Here’s the latest update on former senator Leila de Lima
LEILA DE LIMA – The former senator was allowed by the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial to post bail for her remaining drug case.
The court order, signed by Presiding Judge Gener M. Gito, stated, “Motions for reconsideration of the concerned accused are granted. Thus, the Order of the Court dated June 07, 2023, is reconsidered. Consequently, accused De Lima, Bucayu, Dayan, Sanchez and Dera are allowed to post bail in the amount of P300,000 each.”
De Lima’s co-accused include former Bureau of Corrections chief Franklin Jesus Bucayu, her former aide Ronnie Dayan, former security aide Joenel Sanchez, and Jad Dera. State prosecutors alleged that de Lima and Bucayu tolerated the illegal drug trade at the national penitentiary from May 2013 to May 2015 when she served as justice secretary.
De Lima, consistently denying the charges, has asserted that she is a victim of political persecution by then-President Rodrigo Duterte. She attributed Duterte’s animosity to her outspoken opposition to his administration’s aggressive campaign against illegal drugs and human rights violations.
De Lima has faced three drug charges, securing victories in two cases through demurrer of evidence in February 2021 and the lack of merit in the prosecution’s case in May of the current year. Since February 2017, De Lima has been in detention at Camp Crame.
Meanwhile, Leila Norma Eulalia Josefa Magistrado de Lima is a politician, lawyer, human rights activist, and law professor who previously held the position of Senator of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. She served as the chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights from 2008 to 2010 and later assumed the role of Secretary of Justice in President Benigno Aquino III’s cabinet from 2010 to 2015. Recognized as a vocal critic of the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, she was arrested in 2017 on charges linked to the New Bilibid Prison drug trafficking issue during her term as the Justice Secretary.
