ILOILO City – The appellate court affirmed the decision of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 118 of Pasay City which found former Iloilo provincial administrator Manuel “Boy” Mejorada guilty of four counts of libel.
Sen. Franklin Drilon hauled Mejorada to court in 2014 for four social media and blog posts accusing the legislator of irregularities in three construction projects: the circumferential road in Pavia, Iloilo; the Iloilo Convention Center in Mandurriao district; and the Guimaras-Iloilo Ferry Terminal.
In its 27-page decision dated Sept. 18, 2018, the Court of Appeals (CA) Second Division denied Mejorada’s appeal. It also modified the penalty meted against him.
“Wherefore, in view of the foregoing, the instant appeal is denied. The Feb. 1, 2017 decision of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 118 of Pasay City…is hereby affirmed with modification that accused-appellant Manuel ‘Boy’ P. Mejorada is found guilty of the offense of libel charged in each of the four cases, and sentencing him in each of the cases to suffer imprisonment of two years and four months and one day, as minimum, to four years and two months, as maximum, be served simultaneously, pursuant to Article 70 of the Revised Penal Code,” read the dispositive portion of the decision penned by Associate Justice Ma. Luisa C. Quijano-Padilla and concurred by Associate Justices Remedios A. Salazar-Fernando and Franchito N. Diamante.
The RTC sentenced Mejorada with only one penalty – four years – for the four criminal charges. But according to the CA, following the so-called multiple publication rule accused-appellant should be penalized distinctly for each count considering that each libelous article constituted a distinct offense where separate penalties should be imposed.
“My lawyer already filed a motion for reconsideration on Monday, Oct. 22. I will exhaust every legal remedy until it reaches the Supreme Court,” according to Mejorada yesterday.
The appellate court agreed with the RTC that Mejorada, in four articles, committed libel “by making it appear that Senator Drilon took advantage of his position in government and suggesting that he meddled in the various projects in Iloilo City for financial gain…”
These were Mejorada’s articles deemed libelous:
* “Putting Safety on the Line – the Iloilo Convention Center” (Sept. 30, 2013)
* “Drilon’s Version of the Macapagal Boulevard” (Jan. 14, 2014)
* “The Great Ferry Terminal Robbery Attempt” (Jan. 15, 2014)
* “Drilon’s Midas Touch” (Jan. 29, 2014)/PN
