ILOILO CITY – Councilor Plaridel Nava II here has been indicted for 12 counts of cyber libel.
In a Facebook post, Nava said he posted P576,000 bail on Thursday, Oct. 20, after a warrant of arrest was issued against him by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 90.
“I was not arrested nor detained. I voluntarily surrendered to the jurisdiction of the court and immediately posted bail,” Nava said.
The charges against Nava stemmed from a series of alleged malicious Facebook posts against Iloilo City Rep. Julienne “Jamjam” Baronda from 2019 to 2020.
“I cannot discuss the merits of the case by virtue of the ‘sub judice’ rule. However, I can only say that Baronda filed the complaint because according to her, she felt humiliated and embarrassed after alleging that I called her ‘mango’ (stupid)...‘changing boyfriends more often,’ ‘incompetent,’ and etcetera,” said Nava.
Baronda originally filed 65 counts of cyber libel against Nava but only 12 were elevated to the court.
Nava taunted Baronda on Facebook.
“I love the excitement and the challenges. And I cannot wait to see Baronda in the witness stand talking in English. Let’s get it on!” added Nava.
Nava was a former lawyer. He was disbarred by the Supreme Court in 2020 for gross immorality and conflict of interest when he engaged in an illicit affair with the wife of his former client.