Taguig prosecutors dismiss Sara Duterte’s perjury case vs Ramil Madriaga

MANILA, Philippines —  The Taguig City Prosecutor’s Office has dismissed the perjury complaints filed by Vice President Sara Duterte against Ramil Madriaga, her alleged former aide.

In a 19-page resolution released on Thursday, the prosecutors junked Duterte’s complaint against Madriaga due to “insufficiency of evidence.”

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“While complainant has presented evidence disputing respondent’s assertions, the evidence presently on record does not establish prima facie, with reasonable certainty of conviction, that respondent knowingly and willfully made materially false statements under oath in violation of Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code,” the Taguig Prosecutor’s Office said in the resolution.

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READ: Sara Duterte files another perjury case vs Madriaga

“Accordingly, the Complaint must be dismissed for insufficiency of evidence,” the prosecutor added.

The Inquirer reached out to Duterte’s camp regarding the resolution, but they have yet to respond to the query.

It was in March when Duterte filed her first perjury complaint before the Taguig Prosecutor’s Office against Madriaga after her supposed former aide submitted an affidavit to the Office of the Ombudsman claiming that he had delivered large sums of money to different people under her instructions.

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Madriaga likewise claimed that upon Duterte’s directive, he organized ISIP (Inday Sara Is My President) Pilipinas for her planned presidential bid in 2022, which was allegedly funded by Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators and drug dealers. 

The vice president denied the accusation, maintaining that she had neither personal nor professional dealings with Madriaga, and that his claim of having served as her “bagman’’ or courier for diverted confidential funds was false.

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Duterte filed another perjury complaint in the same office August consisted of approximately 1,000 pages, which “thoroughly exposes Madriaga’s malicious and deliberate falsehoods.”

‘The truth still prevail’

Madriaga’s counsel, Atty. Mark Anthony Te said in a statement that the Taguig City Prosecutor’s Office’s resolution is “important vindication” of Duterte’s alleged former aide’s position.

“It should serve as a source of renewed confidence for the Filipino people that our institutions can still rise above personalities and political power, and that when the evidence is fairly examined, the truth can still prevail,” Te said.

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“The pursuit of truth and justice is rarely easy, especially when one is made to stand against powerful interests. But this Resolution demonstrates that power does not have the final word. Evidence does. The law does,” he added. /mr