Malacañang stands by De Lima amid 'electioneering' charge

Malacañang on Wednesday defended Justice Secretary Leila de Lima from accusations that she was just out to get publicity with the reinvestigation of the Vizconde massacre. "Yes, we will defend her," presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said in a text message to reporters. In a separate text message, deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said they are confident that De Lima will continue to discharge her duties with fairness and objectivity. Earlier in the day, lawyer Luis Agcaoili, one of the counsels of the family of Hubert Webb, said De Lima was guilty of "electioneering" because she was just using the matter to elicit public approval. Webb was one of the seven accused earlier acquitted by the Supreme Court for the killings of Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde on June 30, 1991 inside their Parañaque home. On Tuesday, a joint task force headed by De Lima revealed evidence that would supposedly prove that Hubert was in the country during the time the crime was committed. Reinvestigation It was Malacañang that ordered De Lima, Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, Philippine National Police chief Director General Raul Bacalzo and National Bureau of Investigation Director Magtanggol Gatdula to reinvestigate the 1991 Vizconde massacre. The memorandum, issued on Dec. 16 last year, ordered the concerned government agencies to "conduct a thorough investigation of the case, utilizing all available resources at your disposal to finally solve the same with the end-in-view of apprehending and prosecuting the authors of the crime." Valte had said that the Palace supports a reinvestigation of the case as "every case which remains unsolved should be pursued so that the perpetrators will be brought to justice." In the memorandum, Executive Secretary Paquito "Jojo" Ochoa Jr. tasked De Lima to evaluate the possibility of compensating those "who may have been wrongfully accused" of the crime after the Supreme Court acquitted seven people, including Hubert Webb, a former senator's son. Malacañang believed that the government is duty-bound to find the perpetrators of the crime. — Amita Legaspi/RSJ, GMA News