Two lawmakers on Wednesday sought a congressional inquiry into the case of three lawyers arrested recently by police for allegedly obstructing the service of the search warrant against Time in Manila bar, a suspected drug den, in Makati City.
In House Resolution 2086, Reps. Doy Leachon of Oriental Mindoro and Salvador Belaro Jr. of 1-Ang Edukasyon party-list asked the House committees on justice, and good government and public accountability to probe the detention by the Makati police of Jan Vincent Soliven, Lenie Rocel Rocha, and Romulo Bernard Alarkon.
Leachon is the chairman of the House committee on justice.
“Whereas, in the event said lawyers’ presence in the said raid is found out to be only for the fulfillment of their duties as officers of the court, a reference of the said irregularity should never be countenanced because of its chilling effect on the rule of law,” said Leachon and Belaro.
They said “now that no less than National Police chief Oscar Albayalde has publicly come to [the] defense of the Makati City police officers who arrested the three lawyers last August 16, the proper legal remedies of those lawyers does not include the Commission on Human Rights, which can only investigate but not prosecute.”
The two lawmakers also urged the National Police Commission to recommend the filing of charges against the Makati City police officers.
“The three aggrieved lawyers must cite, among others, the violations of specific provisions of the PNP’s own operations manual and standard operating procedures on crime scene investigations and criminal procedure,” said Leachon and Belaro.
The two lawmakers noted in the resolution the “need” to propose new legislation or amend existing laws to prevent a repeat of the Time in Manila bar incident.