BACOLOD CITY – Negros Oriental congresswoman-elect Janice Degamo said the wife of expelled lawmaker Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. is not enough to compensate his victims, including her husband, the late Gov. Roel Degamo.
“The lives lost in Pamplona massacre, including my beloved husband and former governor Roel Degamo, cannot be repaid by the life of former Negros Oriental congressman Arnie Teves,” she told Manila Standard in a phone interview.
Degamo made the statement after Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla on Friday said Manila assured the Timor-Leste government that all its conditions will be honored.
In the certificate of handover signed by Philippine and Timorese officials, the Philippine government was informed that Teves cannot be sentenced to death: “Even if it were to be reinstated [in the Philippines], it could not be imposed in this case, as it cannot be applied retroactively.”
The Timor-Leste government also asked the Philippine government to observe due process throughout the criminal proceedings.
“The conditions do not reflect our Philippine realities. We don’t have capital punishment or death penalty for that matter, and I am not saying I am for death penalty, but let me reiterate that his (Teves’) life and imprisonment are not enough for the lives and dreams of poor and simple people that he had taken away,” she said.
“We have discussed and clarified these actually when we went to Timor Leste last year to press for Teves extradition,” Degamo added.
She said they have a strong case against Teves, who was deported Wednesday afternoon.
