Before fellow solons, Crisologo protests ‘unlawful’ arrest

Quezon City Representative and losing mayoralty candidate Vincent "Bingbong" Crisologo on Monday protested his arrest for alleged vote-buying on the eve of the May 13 elections, saying that he has parliamentary immunity as a lawmaker.

In a privilege speech, Crisologo urged his fellow lawmakers to investigate his "unlawful" arrest and come up with a measure to strengthen the rights accorded to House members to prevent police officers from violating them.

"It is our beholden duty to protect not only the rights of the Members of Congress but also the rights of the ordinary citizens against unlawful arrests and searches," he said.

"We should not allow the police officers to shamelessly trample upon our rights, and abuse their police authority," he added.

Crisologo is facing complaints such as unjust vexation, direct assault and obstruction of justice after he allegedly tried to stop the arrest of his supporters who were supposedly involved in a vote-buying incident on the evening of May 12.

He claimed he was merely assisting one of his campaign leaders, Arturo Delos Reyes, when "several men" forcibly entered the latter's residence as he was giving kits for PDP-Laban poll watchers that night.

He said the men introduced themselves as police officers despite not being in uniform and failing to show a police badge, and that they were acting on a report of vote buying happening inside the residence.

Crisologo told them that he was only protesting their unlawful entry into his campaign leader's house, but said that even though they knew he was a congressman, the police officers shouted at him and arrested him along with his 43 supporters.

They also arrested his lawyer son who was only assisting him during the encounter, he added.

Crisologo also said the police officers did not inform them of the nature and cause of their accusations and the reason for their arrest, and claimed they also did not read them their Miranda rights.

"These actuations of the police officers demonstrate their brutality and utter disregard for the rights of the people," he said.

"If they could do these atrocious and cruel things to an incumbent Congressman and to a lawyer, they could easily do these things to our ordinary citizens and even to you, my dear colleagues," he added.

According to Crisologo, members of the House are granted by the Constitution immunity from arrest for crimes punishable by not more than six years while Congress is in session, and his charge of obstruction of justice will only get him a jail sentence of four years, two months and one day to six years.

He insisted that even though Congress was on recess during his arrest, it does not mean that it is not in session, hence he should not have been arrested.

"I believe that my arrest was purposely planned to prevent me from exercising my right to vote. We should not allow these men in uniform to arrogantly violate our rights," he said.

"This kind of men does not deserve a place in the Philippine National Police. They bring shame rather than honor; they abuse rather than protect," he added.

Crisologo was released on election day itself and was able to vote, but he eventually lost his mayoralty bid to Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte.

All the complaints lodged against Crisologo are for further investigation, according to the Quezon City Police District. — BM, GMA News