“Court orders the immediate release from detention”.
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The justices who voted in favor of dismissing the plunder case against Arroyo over her alleged misuse of P 366-million worth of PCSO intelligence funds were Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr., Teresita de Castro, Arturo Brion, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Mariano del Castillo, Jose Perez, Jose Mendoza, Bienvenido Reyes, Estela Bernabe and Francis Jardeleza.
The Philippine Supreme Court on Tuesday acquitted former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo of plunder for lack of evidence.
Arroyo is the second Philippine president to be jailed for plunder.
The 69-year-old, who was in office from 2001-2010, could be freed later today from the Manila government hospital where she has been held since her November 2011 arrest, her lawyers said. She denies all charges and has posted bail.
She was re-elected to congress in May for a third successive term, despite not attending any house sessions.
In her petition with the SC, Arroyo sought a reversal of two Sandiganbayan resolutions, dated April 6, 2015 and September 10, 2015, that junked her demurrer to evidence, a plea raised when a defendant believes the evidence against him or her is weak.
Duterte has appointed a number of Arroyo allies to his Cabinet, including his advisers on national security and peace talks with Marxist and Muslim guerrillas.
Arroyo admitted talking to an election official and apologized for her “lapse in judgment” in making such a call but said the conversation occurred after the votes had been counted.
“Let us respect and abide by the High Court’s decision”.
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The ruling, he said, validated the position of the Arroyo camp that the charges against her were “nothing more than disingenuous attempts at political persecution”.
