By Perfecto T. Raymundo
Philippine News Agency
(Editor’s note: We made corrections on this item, regarding the fact that Menorca has never been an INC minister)
MANILA (PNA) — The Court of Appeals (CA) has deleted several portions of the judicial affidavit of expelled Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC) member Lowell Menorca II in connection with his petition against the INC and some of its ministers, saying that various parts are speculative, conjectural and constitute an inadmissible opinion.
In its 42-page ruling written by Associate Justice Victoria Isabela Paredes, the CA’s Seventh Division said that the phrase “threatening us that the Church Administration will not let us live once we get implicated with Antonio Ebanghelista” is non-assertive of the truth and is argumentative.
“We resolve the Motion filed by respondents to strike out certain portions in the Judicial Affidavit of Lowell Menorca II for reasons stated therein; in resolving the Motion, we have taken into consideration the Opposition/Comment filed by petitioners…” the Jan. 13, 2016 ruling said.
The case arose from Menorca’s petition before the Supreme Court (SC) claiming that he was allegedly abducted by heavily armed men in civilian clothing and uniformed policemen in Cavite.
The SC had directed the CA to hear the petitions for habeas corpus and amparo originally filed before the SC on behalf of Menorca.
In its ruling, the CA deleted the phrase “Bro. Mabasa talked to us inside our house and told us that the decision given by Bro. Eduardo V. Manalo was to give us another chance” as it has no relevance to issues to be resolved.
The CA granted INC’s motion to remove the statement of Menorca with reference to the alleged planting of ‘grenade,’ stating that it has no basis.
It also favored the petition of the INC to strike out the phrase “he told me not to worry because that people who had the power and influence to put to jail are the same people who has the power to make it disappear too.”
Likewise, the CA gave weight to the INC’s argument that the same is inadmissible for being violative of the res inter alios acta rule.
The CA ruled that several statements of Menorca were either precluded, no relevance to the issues in the proceedings, non-assertive of the truth, and conclusion without basis or indeed made.
In the same ruling, the CA also partly expunged Menorca’s accounts attributed to Ka Eduardo supposedly uttered by one “Ka TJ,” adding that the same are hearsay and irrelevant.
The INC had said the writs of amparo and habeas corpus pending at the CA have glaring infirmities that weaken the cases.
Concurring in the ruling were Associate Justices Magdangal de Leon and Elihu Ybanez. (Courtesy Philippine News Agency)