For days now, Ms. Horn has been blabbering to the media on all sorts of incredible accounts of how GMA has been violated etc.etc. to the point that it becomes irritating why the administration has been unusually meek on the issue. It is high time the government lawyers dehorned her and muzzle her up.
In my previous article I commended the GMA camp, including Ms. Horn, for competently doing its job vis-à-vis the indecision of the interior department and the police on such mundane issue as transporting an accused. But Ms. Horn has since gone way over her head, incessantly harping on legal matters she has no expertise over; even clear understanding of.
She had better leave the legal pronouncements or argument to their lawyers, and not arrogate to herself what clearly is beyond her competence.
Today, in her interview at Headstart, she continued her make-believe claims so exaggerated she starts sounding like a nonsense machine. For instance, she says that GMA’s terms of hospital arrest is excessively restrictive and poor that she may be worse off than a regular inmate in a regular detention cell. What baloney! I suggest she spend one day in a real detention cell to give her a clue of what she’s talking about.
Then she proceeds to lament that the police’s advice that there may be some curtailment in the amount of visits and access to GMA as a violation of Republic Act… –not surprising she failed to cite the number– (susmariosep magpakalawyer eh!) so let me supply, RA7438, the law which defines the rights of persons arrested, detained, or under custodial investigations.
She goes on to say that it violates GMA’s right to access to her lawyers, doctors, priests, members of family, etc. Notably, she enumerated them in plural forms. But a reading of the subject special law, particularly Sec. 4 (b) enumerates, and seemingly in a conscious and deliberate manner, the said persons in its singular form.
It is not difficult to understand why it is so. For otherwise, if the law allows all the lawyers and doctors she could afford, all the priests and ministers she could convince, and all members of her family including Ms. Horn to confer with her at all times, then her hospital arrest will look more like a continuing reunion party or a political campaign.
In fact, in that same law, it is provided that the security officer who has custodial responsibility over the detainee may undertake such reasonable measures as may be necessary to ensure his safety and prevent his escape. Therefore, reasonable restrictions are in order considering that GMA is no doubt a person of interest.
I concede that by all means she must be allowed access to her lawyers any time of the day, or even night if the urgency of the matter at hand warrants. But NOT to an entourage or retinue of aides and alalays. Again, both Ms. Horn and GMA must wake up to the latter’s reality now, that is, she is accused for crimes so heinous (electoral sabotage & several counts of plunder) the law may not allow bail.
Ms. Horn squeamishly ranting about being deprived of laptops, internet access, ipod, and such other things not allowed a detainee is just pushing luck too far. She is simply out of touch with reality. She has got to put her feet on the ground, and stop daydreaming as though all these are not happening.
If she does not wise up, then it is the job of the government to counter her innuendos of irregularity in the treatment of GMA. The administration’s silence lends Horn the bravado to go babbling in the media.
Sadly, the public tends to believe, regardless of the truth, whoever has a side of story to offer it.
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