Pubdate: Mon, 28 Feb 2005
Source: Philippine Star (Philippines)
Copyright: PhilSTAR Daily Inc. 2005
Contact:  http://www.philstar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/622
Author: Bobit S. Avila
Cited: Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency http://www.pdea.gov.ph
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/areas/Philippines

LANDLORDS: LIABLE FOR THE CRIMES OF
TENANTS

Inside Cebu

One of the biggest cases that gets into the news headlines in Cebu is
still that of the mega shabu lab raided last Sept. 24 in Mandaue City
which undoubtedly caused huge embarrassment to Cebuanos as it has been
dubbed the biggest shabu haul in Asia. Of course, 11 people, mostly
foreigners, were arrested in that raid and thanks to Interpol
cooperation, one of the ringleaders is now in jail in Hong Kong.

But if you think that that raid has deterred foreign criminals from
using the Philippines as base for illegal drug manufacturing, a couple
of months ago, another mega shabu lab was raided in Davao City. Now
you ask, how could this criminal activity escape the ever-watchful
eyes of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte? At this point, everyone just has to be
always on the lookout.

No doubt, the mega shabu lab in Mandaue City made history of sorts as
the biggest such manufacturing facility... but that's not all the
history it's making. Thanks to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency
(PDEA) law, businessmen Andy Ng and Richard Ong, the owners of the
bodega, which they unfortunately leased to the so-called "Shabu 11"
who turned it into the biggest shabu factory in Mandaue City, were
also jailed. They are the first-ever Filipino businessmen jailed for
something done by their tenant... and if you ask me, this is a very
dangerous precedent as there are a lot of building owners in this country.

Yes, these two businessmen are behind bars on suspicion that they are
part and parcel of this shabu laboratory and since this offense is
non-bailable, the poor businessmen are now languishing in jail. Often,
the media also makes the mistake of naming them as the owners of the
shabu laboratory, when in truth, they're merely the owners of the
building which their lessee turned into a shabu laboratory.

The latest on this case was the issuance of a restraining order by the
19th Division of the Court of Appeals, penned by Associate Justice
Sesinando Villon, stopping Mandaue Regional Trial Court (RTC)
Executive Judge Marilyn Yap from further hearing the businessmen's
case as their lawyers were seeking bail... after all, their clients
are suffering in prison for a crime they insist they didn't commit.
What can we say, but for these businessmen, no house arrest is being
offered... they must stay in jail. I guess that's because their name is
not Estrada or Erap; otherwise they'd be afforded special or even
royal, if not presidential treatment.

Whatever happened to that dictum which goes, "It is far better to have
a hundred criminals go scot-free than to see one innocent man in
jail." Well, another legal phrase we go by is enshrined in the
Constitution, which guarantees the right of a person to be declared
innocent until his guilt is proven. Well, under the PDEA law, it seems
that the exact opposite is being practiced... that a man is considered
guilty until he proves his innocence.

I don't know how this provision emerged into law... but if there was a
public hearing on the creation of the PDEA law and I would like to
believe that there was, then someone failed to look carefully into
this provision and have it stricken out of that proposed law. As my
good friend Atty. Joseph Baduel warns, this could send a deluge of
unwary but innocent businessmen into jail as many of them do not know
about this legal proviso.

Indeed, this seems to be the case and I'd like to point out
specifically that when a landlord hands over the keys of his building
to a tenant, the property becomes private to the tenant, where the
landlord just cannot simply barge in to take a look inside. Just a
week ago, a spa attendant was caught soliciting sexual favors (yes,
massage parlors have adopted the new name "spa" but with the same ugly
practices), thus turning the massage place into a possible
prostitution den. Don't tell me that the building owner will now be
liable for the crimes of the tenant. Of course, it goes without saying
that if, indeed, the owner is into prostitution himself, then there is
no question about his liability.

At this point, someone ought to take a serious look into that specific
provision in the PDEA law and question its constitutionality. Already,
many building owners are gravely concerned about this case. I
discussed this issue with Robert Go, president of the Cebu Chamber of
Commerce and Industry Inc. (CCCII), and Mrs. Virgie Locson, president
of the Cebu Realtors Board, and yes, they expressed this deep concern
that many building owners, not just in Cebu but throughout the entire
Philippines, may just one day find themselves languishing in jail
because of this provision.

It is time to ask our congressmen to amend this provision in the law
because it's downright unfair to lump building owners as parties to a
criminal act not of their doing. Let me point out that we should be
all out against the illegal drug trade, but it should never be at the
expense of the innocent building owners who, by virtue of this law,
are now the unfortunate victims of injustice!

 From the way it looks, when Congress conducted its public hearings on
the PDEA law, no building owner came out to attend, much less protest
this provision of the law... after all, the issue is related to PDEA
and businessmen are obviously not interested in that. But now that
this provision has sent businessmen to jail, we're now sounding the
alarm bells because it would be very easy for a corrupt policeman to
include the name of the building owner in a raid or for a few pesos
more, his name could be excluded. 
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