Andal Ampatuan Sr. to file petition for bail

Andal Ampatuan Sr., an accused in the Maguindanao massacre case, will be following in the footsteps of his son, fellow accused Andal Jr., in attempting to be allowed to post bail for the multiple murder case lodged against them. Andal Sr.'s lawyer Gregorio Narvasa informed reporters on Wednesday about their plan to file a petition for bail. "Yes, we will be filing a petition for bail for Andal Sr.," he said without elaborating. During Wednesday's pre-trial conference at the Quezon City Hall of Justice, lawyer Sigfrid Fortun, another counsel for the Ampatuans, manifested in court their intention to file the petition for bail. The father and son, along with 194 others including other Ampatuan clan members and local policemen and militiamen, are facing 57 counts of murder in connection with the Nov. 23, 2009 massacre, where 57 people were killed, including 32 journalists. The victims were part of an electoral convoy that was supposed to register Esmael Mangudadatu, a member of the Ampatuans’ rival clan, in the May 2010 automated elections. Mangudadatu eventually won as governor of Maguindanao. The crime is now considered as the worst election-related violence and worst single attack against journalists in the Philippines. Andal Jr. had already filed a petition for bail before the sala of Judge Jocelyn Solis-Reyes in early 2009. The court has yet to rule on the petition. Both Andal Sr. and Andal Jr. — the only members of the Ampatuan clan to be arraigned so far — have separately pleaded not guilty to the charges. Other clan members implicated in the crime are Sajid and Rizaldy, both sons of Andal Sr. The prosecution will present its first set of witnesses against Andal Sr. on June 23, the same day that Juliet Evardo, mother of slain UNTV editor Julito Evardo, will testify in court for the civil aspect of the case. Though already arraigned, Andal Sr. no longer needs to be physically present during the proceedings after he filed a waiver of appearance before the court. Solis-Reyes noted the waiver but said Andal Sr. will still have to show up in court under three conditions, namely: 1) when the court requires his presence for identification purposes; 2) during promulgation; and 3) "other circumstances that might require his presence." — Mark D. Merueñas/KBK, GMA News