MANILA: With 11 to 4 votes, the Philippine Supreme Court (SC) had on Tuesday acquitted former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of plunder for her alleged involvement in the misuse of $8 million in the intelligence funds of a government agency that runs the lucrative online lotto.
“Justice and righteousness have once again prevailed over injustice and wrongdoing,” Philippine Star quoted Arroyo as saying.
She also called on the public to “keep the faith in the justice system,” and expressed her intention to attend President Duterte’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 25.
The court reportedly cited failure of the prosecution to present ample evidence to prove she had plundered PhP366 million in Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) funds during her term, which ended in 2010.
Arroyo has been detained at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) since October 2012, the report said.
SC spokesman Theodore Te announced the decision but did not elaborate on the basis of the ruling or explain the process for the release of Arroyo, saying he was only authorized to read the dispositive portion of the ruling.
He also did not explain how the ruling would affect the two earlier petitions filed by Arroyo before the SC seeking bail and assailing the finding of probable cause by the Office of the Ombudsman.
The Sandiganbayan, through presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang, declined to comment on the SC decision but promised to comply with it.
Arroyo had been under hospital arrest on orders of a special court called the Sandiganbayan which had been trying her for plunder which is non-bailable and carries the maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
“President Arroyo was very happy when she learned of the Supreme Court decision,” lawyer Raul Lambino, her spokesman and legal adviser, told media in a text message in Filipino.
While the Arroyo camp welcomed the ruling, allies of former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino expressed disappointment.
The high court also granted relief to her co-accused, former PCSO assistant general manager Benigno Aguas, by granting his petition for demurrer to evidence and ordering his release from the PNP custodial center.
Earlier, the high court had granted Arroyo’s pleas for several furloughs. It also ordered the Sandiganbayan to forward all records of the case for resolution of Arroyo’s petition, reported Philippine Star.
Last December, the SC allowed her to spend Christmas and New Year with her family in their house in La Vista, the report said.
In March, the high tribunal also allowed her to celebrate her 69th birthday with her family in the same residence. The SC also allowed her to vote in her home province in Pampanga in the May 9 elections.
