In an effort to release Pacifico “Curlee” Discaya from the Senate detention facility, the Discaya camp filed a petition for habeas corpus on Tuesday, October 7, before the Supreme Court. The former was previously cited in contempt by the Blue Ribbon Committee, concerning his explanation about his wife, Sarah Discaya’s, absence from the hearing on September 18.
Atty. Cornelio Samaniego III explained in an exclusive interview with DZRH Damdaming Bayan on Wednesday, October 8, that they had submitted an excuse letter addressed to former Senate Blue Ribbon Committee Chairperson Panfilo “Ping” Lacson, indicating the reason for Sarah’s absence. However, the letter and Curlee’s explanation did not line up, prompting the committee to cite the former in contempt.
“May konting hindi pagtutugma sa explanation niya, doon sa excuse letter ni ma’am Sarah. And because of that, sinabi po sa kanya ng Blue Ribbon members na siya po’y nagsisinungaling. Pero sa katotohanan po ay talaga namang may health reason si ma’am Sarah Discaya at the time nung day before the hearing,” Samaniego said.
“‘Yun po ang naging dahilan, nasabihan po siyang nagsisinungaling doon po sa further explanation niya kung bakit wala po ‘yung si ma’am Sarah Discaya,” he added.
Why file a petition?
According to Samaniego, following Curlee’s contempt citation, he immediately filed a motion for reconsideration in hopes of lifting the order. However, the motion was not acted upon by the members of the Blue Ribbon Committee, as the panel had already adjourned.
“And then nung September 19, the following day, as counsel, I filed an urgent motion to resolve the motion for reconsideration. However, it was not acted upon again by the Blue Ribbon Committee or the Senate as a whole,” he explained.
“Wala ho kaming ibang recourse kundi..dumulog sa Korte po kasi alam namin na hindi po sapat ‘yung dahilan na nagkaroon lang ng further expalantion si Mr. Discaya ay nagsisinungaling na siya,” he added.
For now, the Discaya camp awaits further developments on the filed petition for habeas corpus. According to Samaniego, the petition will be raffled this afternoon to see which branch will pick it up.
Meanwhile, Samaniego also mentioned that the Discaya couple is willing to confess to everything they know about the flood control anomalies, as long as they are granted witness protection.
