Former Justice Secretary and now Liberal Party senatorial candidate Leila de Lima’s posturing as a self-styled defender of human rights is sheer “hypocrisy” and that the people should be warned about this, according to Graham Chua Lim, who has earlier scored the former Cabinet member for the “injustice” he suffered.
Lim, the secretary-general of the Basketball Association of the Philippines, said he has been on “exile” abroad for three years in an Asian country since De Lima issued a Department of Justice Circular that prevented his return from Singapore in December 2012.
“For someone who was once the head of the Human Rights Commission, it was utterly disgusting for the Honorable De Lima to violate the same human rights she was sworn to respect under the previous administration but somehow forgot to practice under the current dispensation,” Lim said in an Open Letter to the Public he sent to the local media.
“And now, the honorable De Lima is even seeking a mandate as a Senator of the Republic of the Philippines… The honorable De Lima, a self-styled advocate of human rights before and now of justice, selective though it has been under the current administration, wants your vote,” he stressed.
Lim said he was “born, raised, lived and studied” in the Philippines throughout his life until he was forced into exile following the issuance of De Lima’s directive.
He blamed the LP senatorial candidate for his predicament after she “unduly” reversed an earlier department ruling declaring him a “stateless” person in September 2010 or one who may be allowed permanent residency in the Philippines.
“Moreover, the honorable De Lima even applied a ruling that was not yet in existence at the time of my “exile” to justify my deportation in December 2012. Just remember this: There’s no honor in hypocrisy, as I was taught by my parents as a young kid. The time-tested adage is applicable in the Philippine general elections in May,” he said.
Lim said he was forced out of the country when De Lima issued Circular Number 058, which effectively reversed his status as a “stateless” person and declared him an undesirable alien.
“Until now, I have been unable to return to the land of my birth because of a political conspiracy between the Justice Department and some envious sports officials who until now see me as a threat to their monopolistic control of Philippine sports leadership,” he pointed out.
During his stay in the Philippines, Lim said he was passionate about uplifting local sports, specifically in the sport of basketball, without having to dip his hands into government funds. Neither did he sacrifice his honor and principle in exchange for monetary considerations, Lim added.
He described the treatment he got from his detractors and De Lima as “ridiculous”, especially since De Lima allegedly allowed herself to be used by “the powers that be” in local sports.
De Lima’s Circular, he also explained, should apply only to cases that occurred beginning October 2012 and not to those people that were declared “stateless” before then. In doing so, the Circular acted retroactively in his case.