Revilla defense team oozes confidence after first bail hearing; find out why
At A Glance
- The camp of Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. has never been more confident that it can prove the former senator's innocence from alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects.
Former senator Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. (Facebook)
The camp of Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. has never been more confident that it can prove the former senator's innocence from alleged involvement in anomalous flood control projects.
This, after Revilla’s counsel, lawyer Reody Balisi, observed that the prosecution failed to show any connection between his client and the subject flood control project irregularities in Pandi, Bulacan.
“We have seen from the testimonies and even from the prosecution’s own documents that there is no participation at all on the part of the former senator,” Balisi said.
He was referring to Revilla's bail hearing for his malversation case that took place on Monday, April 6 at the Sandiganbayan anti-grart court in Quezon City.
Balisi claimed that initial witness testimonies during the hearing even supported the defense’s position in that the former senator had no participation whatsoever in the flood control projects corruption scandal.
“We will confront the witnesses with our questions and evidence,” vowed Revilla's counsel, who anticipated testimonies from up to 20 individuals during the course of the bail hearings.
Balisi noted that the first day of hearings Tuesday featured two witnesses--a representative from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and a project coordination officer from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)-First District Engineering Office of Bulacan.
As far as the defense was concerned, both testimonies suggested that Revilla had neither involvement in the procurement nor implementation of the Pandi project.
The lawyer added that the testimony indicated that actual construction took place, which practically disproved claims that it was a "ghost" or non-existent project.
As for evidence directly linking Revilla to the project in question, Balisi argued that there was simply none presented during the proceedings.
The bail hearings are expected to last 10 days.