AT FIRST glance, the inmates at Misamis Oriental Provincial Jail (MOPJ) do not look like they have been in prison as they go about making Christmas lanterns. Among those who have been toiling for the last couple of days was Vicente Libona, called “Tatay” by his fellow prisoners.
Like other inmates at MOPJ, Tatay was one of those who chose to augment their livelihood while in incarceration by making and selling their Christmas lanterns, which ranged from P75 to P1, 600, depending on the size and design.
The array of colors and glitters that adorned the lanterns may have enlivened the hearts of many, but for Tatay, the lanterns only served to remind him of his family in Valencia City in Bukidnon province, of Christmases spent not with his loved ones at home.
Tatay is a political prisoner who has been detained inside the MOPJ for more than eight years as his case, robbery with homicide, is still being heard.
He said he was wrongfully accused of attacking a Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (Cafgu) detachment in Baranga Kibanban, Balingasag, a town in Misamis Oriental on June 3, 2003.
The attack was reportedly carried out by the New People’s Army where one Cafgu member was killed during the firefight while several firearms were seized by the Communist rebels.
Authorities claimed Tatay was a member of the NPA raiding team that opened fire on the Cafgu outpost leading to his arrest and trial.
Tatay said a witness claimed to have seen him during the attack, but during the cross and direct examinations the same witness clarified he was not there when the incident happened.
That the eyewitness did not actually see him at the crime scene contrary to his testimony should be reason enough for the court to exonerate him, Tatay said.
“I’m confused. If the eyewitness did not see me at all, why am I still here in prison?” Tatay added.
Documents pertaining to thousands of cases from Northern Mindanao were destroyed when the Hall of Justice caught fire in 2015. Along with those burned were Tatay’s case records. His hopes of being set free brightened.
The court ordered the prosecutor handling his case to put together all the documents that were lost to the fire.
But July 2016 came and still the prosecutor failed to present to the court the reconstituted record of Tatay’s case.
Tatay said the failure of the prosecution to reproduce his record should be ground for his release but the prosecutor in-charge asked the judge to give him time to check the suspect’s files at the Philippine Army headquarters.
Last September, the judge ruled that if the prosecutor will not show the reconstituted records, Tatay’s case will be dismissed.
On October 5 this year, a new prosecutor was assigned to Tatay’s case who showed to the court an incomplete set of documents, among them a police blotter.
By this time, Tatay was feeling dejected as he was expecting the judge will finally rule on his case in his favor.
On October 26, the new prosecutor asked Tatay to plead guilty and ask for forgiveness in exchange for his freedom. But he refused the offer.
“I did not agree. They should have offered it to me long before, not when I have already spent eight years of my life in jail. Besides, I don’t want to admit to the crime that I did not commit. My conscience could not take it. I cannot ask for forgiveness when the fact is that I have done nothing wrong,” Tatay said.
As he was preoccupied with designing his latest lantern, Tatay said part of his earnings go to his family.
Now a supervisor with nine other inmates working with him for this seasonal project, Tatay joined other prisoners in lantern-making during his first year in 2008.
When he first started, Tatay said his group earned about P12,000. His share then was P1,000. Last year, he grossed P15,000 with a net income of P10,000.
Most of his earnings were sent to support his children, two of whom are still in school.
During the holidays, families are allowed to spend time with the inmates for half a day during Christmas and this is one of the times that Tatay enjoys the company of his children and wife.
But Tatay said he still longs to be free and wishes President Rodrigo Duterte will finally make good on his promise to release all the political detainees.
