SENATE President Chiz Escudero on Tuesday congratulated former Senator Leila de Lima after being cleared of all three drug charges filed against her by the previous government.
Escudero, at the same time, believed that de Lima deserved to be in the Senate.
Should she decide to run again, the former senator has a good chance of being elected in the upcoming midterm elections, the Senate president said.
“I hope so because she deserves to be in the Senate, but is she running?” he said.
“I congratulate former Senator De Lima, not only for finally getting justice but for facing her accusers head-on and following and believing in the rule of law, however unfair it may have looked upon her at that time,” he said.
Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros, for her part, said the dismissal of De Lima’s remaining drug case proved that justice is based on truth and evidence, “not on baseless charges and political motivations.”
“She has faced public ridicule and injustices, yet she remained steadfast in her commitment to truth and justice,” Hontiveros said in a statement.
Hontiveros called on authorities to pursue and hold accountable those who perpetuated “unfounded allegations” against the former Justice secretary.
The Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 206 on Monday dismissed De Lima’s conspiracy to commit drug trading case for failure of the prosecution to prove her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
