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MANILA, Philippines — Expelled Negros Oriental representative Arnolfo Teves Jr. was flown back to the Philippines yesterday after Timor-Leste ordered his “immediate deportation.”
A Philippine Air Force (PAF) plane with law enforcement authorities led by National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Jaime Santiago picked up Teves in Dili yesterday morning following the Timor-Leste Ministry of the Interior’s order for the deportation of Teves, tagged as the mastermind in the killing of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo and nine others.
The plane landed in Davao at 7:30 p.m. to refuel before proceeding to the PAF headquarters at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City.
In issuing the order, Dili authorities said Teves is “a threat to national security and interests.”
“We waited two years for this to happen. And now, we thank God that this reckoning that we have been waiting for is finally happening, as it should be. He (Teves) must face the charges against him here,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said.
Degamo’s widow, Negros Oriental representative-elect Janice Degamo, hailed the deportation.
“The government of Timor-Leste has recognized what we have long known to be true, that the continued presence of Arnie Teves in their country compromises regional peace, security and the rule of law,” Degamo said.
Marcos thanks Dili
It’s time for Teves to face his cases here in the Philippines, President Marcos, said as he recognized Timor-Leste’s role in bringing the expelled lawmaker back to the country
In a video statement, Marcos said he was first informed by Timor-Leste Prime Minister Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão of his government’s readiness to send Teves back to the Philippines during the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit in Kuala Lumpur.
“This would not have happened without the assistance of President (José Ramos) Horta and Prime Minister Gusmão of Timor-Leste. They have been working very hard to bring this to conclusion,” the President said shortly after Teves’ arrival in the Philippines.
Remulla meanwhile said the PAF plane was expected to arrive last night and was to make a stopover in Mindanao for refueling before flying to PAF headquarters at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City.
Remulla said the PAF plane was expected to arrive last night at the PAF headquarters at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City after a stopover in Mindanao for refueling.
He said Teves would be made to undergo a health checkup by doctors from the NBI.
Teves, who will be detained at the NBI facility, is set to be presented before the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 51, which is handling the murder cases against him and his other co-accused, possibly today, for booking procedures.
“The trial (of the cases) is already ongoing. He will just be under the jurisdiction of the court, finally. Witnesses have been heard, and they are still being heard. We are not finished presenting the evidence against them (Teves and other accused) but we are presenting evidence as we speak. We have many witnesses to present to testify on the incident,” Remulla said.
Remulla, meanwhile, said the DOJ has yet to decide on where to detain Teves.
“His safety is our concern. So, most probably (he will be detained) in one of the NBI facilities that we’ve prepared. We have prepared several detention facilities. We will make sure he is safe,” he said.
“We assure that tight security will be in place once he returns to the Philippines,” said immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval.
Outgoing Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rommel Marbil said the PNP Custodial Center is available should the justice department opt to have Teves detained there.
Earlier in the day, Remulla dispatched to Timor-Leste a joint team composed of representatives from the DOJ, Bureau of Immigration and NBI to assist in the repatriation of Teves
Remulla said Teves would be accorded due process and fair trial. “Everything will undergo due process. We even assured the executives of Timor-Leste that we will do things, observing all tenets of due process and fair play. Unlike the victims who died here. There was no fair play when 13 people were murdered,” Remulla said.
“These 13 people were killed here in our country. So, this issue is not just a political matter or an issue of alliances. What is important here is to give justice to the families of the victims,” he added.
Regional responsibility
In a separate press statement, the DOJ lauded the Timor-Leste government’s decision to deport Teves on top of prohibiting him from re-entering its territory for a period of 10 years.
“As we await the arrival of Mr. Teves, the Philippine Government assures the public and the international community that due process will be strictly observed, and that justice will be pursued without fear or favor. Justice will prevail,” it added.
In a statement, the Presidency of the Council of Minister of Government of Timor-Leste yesterday reiterated that the decision ordering the immediate deportation of Teves was grounded on its national law on migration and asylum as Teves was staying in its territory without a valid visa.
“This decision stems from the finding that the citizen in question was in the country without a valid visa, without legal authorization to remain, and with a passport that his country of origin had revoked. The measure is based on national legislation on migration and asylum and is justified by the risks that this citizen’s continued presence poses to public order and national security,” the statement, posted on the Timor-Leste government’s official website, read.
At an online press conference, Teves’ lawyer in the Philippines, Ferdinand Topacio decried his client’s deportation as a clear defiance of the resolution of the Timor-Leste Court of Appeal issued on Wednesday, supposedly ordering the arresting authorities of Timor-Leste to justify within 48 hours the legality of Teves’ arrest.
“In this order issued by the Tribunal De Recursos (Court of Appeal) of Timor-Leste, the arrest must be justified within 48 hours. But now this order has become moot and academic because of Teves’ deportation,” Topacio said. — Gilbert Bayoran, Rudy Santos, Emmanuel Tupas, Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Evelyn Macairan
