MANILA, Philippines – Former senator Leila de Lima‘s only remaining drug charge was re-raffled to a new court, following the inhibition of two judges in less than a month.

In a message to reporters, lawyer Boni Tacardon, one of De Lima’s legal counsels, confirmed the reassignment of the case. Tacardon said the drug charge was re-raffled to Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 206, under Presiding Judge Gener Gito.

The De Lima camp said the case was re-raffled on July 10. Tacardon has yet to provide additional details, including the next schedule of the hearing.

Judge Gito used to preside over Muntinlupa City RTC Branch 256, and was among the judges who allowed De Lima to temporarily leave her detention cell to visit her ailing mother in 2019. The presiding judge also junked the government prosecutors’ request to hold De Lima and Tacardon in contempt, for lack of merit in 2022.

Presiding Judge Gito also handles the case against former Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag in relation to the killing of Jun Villamor, the alleged middleman who contacted people to kill broadcaster Percy Lapid.

On July 6, Muntinlupa City RTC Branch 204 Presiding Judge Abraham Joseph Alcantara inhibited from the case. Alcantara explained that a judge must always maintain the trust and faith of parties-litigants, and at the very first sign of lack of faith “whether well-grounded or not,” the judge has “no alternative” but to stop handling the case.

Presiding Judge Alcantara was also the same judge who handed down De Lima’s second acquittal in her three drug charges. The judge’s role in De Lima’s other case was among the reasons cited by the prosecutors in asking Alcantara to inhibit himself.

De Lima, in a statement on July 7, expressed her disappointment over the prosecution’s motion to inhibit.

Prior to Alcantara, Branch 256 Presiding Judge Romeo Buenaventura handled De Lima’s remaining drug charge. However, he was asked by De Lima’s co-accused to inhibit, citing conflict of interest. Buenaventura inhibited from the case on June 15.

De Lima’s co-accused pointed out that “several news surfaced that the Honorable Presiding judge [Romeo Buenaventura] is the brother of Atty. [Emmanuel] S. Buenaventura.” It was the lawyer Emmanuel Buenaventura “who assisted Accused [Ronnie] Dayan in the execution of his affidavit, which was later, testified to by accused Dayan to be coerced.”

Despite two acquittals, De Lima remains detained because her bail petition in her last case was denied by Judge Buenaventura in June. – Rappler.com