JUSTICE Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II on Monday defended his remark before a pro-Duterte rally at the Quirino Grandstand where he asked the crowd who they want next jailed after Senator Leila de Lima, saying his question was meant to entertain the crowd.
He said that in political rallies, every statement made is intended to entertain.
“Pag sa political rally, parang mga entertainment lang yan,” Aguirre said.
During the rally, after Aguirre asked who they want next after De Lima, the crowd responded “Trillanes,” referring to Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who, like De Lima, is a staunch critic of President Duterte.
Aguirre then quipped, “O, tulungan niyo ako ha.” [You should help me].
The DoJ under Aguirre filed three separate drug charges against De Lima before the Muntilupa court which were raffled to three branches. De Lima was arrested last Friday morning and is currently detained at the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame.
When later asked to clarify his remark, Aguirre said he was asked that question even before he gave his short message to the crowd.
Trillanes had recently revived his allegations that Duterte has stashed at least P2.2 billion in ill-gotten wealth in banks and challenged the President to issue a waiver so his bank transactions can be opened to the public.
Trillanes added that he will resign as senator if his claims will not be proven true. He further said that like De Lima, he is also ready to be detained and even die as a consequence for opposing Duterte.
Trillanes earlier tagged the President as a mass murderer who formed the Davao Death Squad to kill suspected criminals and later on, his political and personal enemies, when he was Davao City mayor.
But Aguirre said it was not his intention to have another argument with Trillanes. “Why do you want people to quarrel when there is nothing to it?”
He said he was merely asking the people to help him in providing support to the administration of President Duterte.
“I said help me in supporting the administration of President Duterte. I don’t need the help of anybody outside the DoJ [Department of Justice] family,” said Aguirre.
But Aguirre’s explanations on his remarks last Saturday did not suit well with some senators, including Senator Grace Poe, who reminded the Justice Secretary that he is expected to administer justice, not to moonlight as a ‘perya’ barker and agitate a crowd.
She added that “to say that you [Aguirre] have been carried away by the cheers is no excuse.”
Poe said that a Justice secretary should be made of sterner stuff, one who is never swayed by partisan provocation, because when he does, he betrays his oath and renders his very own self unfit for the job.
“That high office entails prudent decision-making which is not served by tasteless stunts that incite the mob,” she said.
Poe added that as Justice secretary, Aguirre is expected to be the “voice of reason.”
“So you can only imagine how many of your countrymen felt betrayed when you abandoned it for rabble-rousing,” Poe said.
“I know that lawyers are given allowances for theatrics, but that night you clearly crossed the line, and in the process trample the ethics that guide you, by asking the people who to prosecute next, as if it were their choice,” she added.
Senator Joel Villanueva, meanwhile, said that while he fully supports the administration, Aguirre’s act was “uncalled for.”
De Lima’s partymates in the Liberal Party also criticized Aguirre for making the remark.
Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros said it was “extremely disconcerting that we have a justice secretary who is crowd sourcing for the next person who he will prosecute. He is dangerously promoting a lynch mob culture.”
“The Justice secretary must learn to distinguish between prosecution and persecution. The former is based on legitimate investigation and the painstaking job of building cases, the latter is the outright systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by the state,” Hontiveros said.
Senator Francis Pangilinan, on the other hand, assailed Aguirre for being reckless and irresponsible. He said cases are filed based on the evidence, “but the only evidence here is that we have a secretary of Justice asking the crowd as to who is to be charged and jailed next.”
But Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said Aguirre might have just been “kidding and just playing with the crowd.
But while Aguirre admitted that Poe “has the right to say that,” he admonished his critics for their lack of a sense of humor.
Aguirre said he was only joking when he made the remark. “Ano pa? Wala silang sense of humor,”
Nonetheless, Aguirre said that “next time my speech will be more appropriate,” but noted that his critics are “making a mountain out of a mole hill.”
