DEPARTMENT of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin ‘Boying’ Remulla, assured he would not intervene nor use the power of his office in the case of his eldest son, Juanito Jose Diaz Remulla III, after he was caught on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, while in the act of receiving a package of high-grade marijuana from the United States worth some P1.3 million.
The package, containing some 873 grams of ‘kush marijuana,’ was sent to the younger Remulla from California, USA, by a man named, ‘Benjamin Huffman,’ according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
As a matter of protocol, it first underwent a series of tests to determine its actual content before the PDEA and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport decided to launch a ‘controlled delivery operation’ that ended at the house of Juanito in Bgy. Talon, Las Piñas City.
“A person should always face the consequences of their actions and I will let justice take its own course,” said the justice secretary in a hand-written press statement he sent to the media.
At the time of the incident, Remulla was still in Geneva, Switzerland, on an official mission.
He also said that he takes his roles as father and as justice secretary seriously but noted that his son, at 38 years old, is already responsible for all his actions.
Remulla also added that while the incident has been “very difficult” for his family, he also hopes it would lead to a “path to redemption” for his son.
If convicted, Juanito faces a lifetime jail term as the importation and possession of illegal drugs of such volume is a no-bail offense under RA 9165. He was formally indicted before the Las Piñas City trial court last October 14, 2022.
Opportune time for commies, critics
The arrest was immediately used by front organizations of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and other anti-government forces and critics to call for the immediate resignation of Remulla from the DOJ.
Rep. France Castro, who was several times shamed by Remulla at the plenary of Congress during his term as a senior House leader over Castro’s and her group’s link to the CPP, immediately accused the authorities of giving ‘special treatment’ to Remulla’s son without offering any proof and merely relying on news reports, many of which were slanted against the justice secretary.
Castro claimed the delayed news report about the arrest, the “late” filing of the case in court and even Juanito’s “blurred” mug shot constitute ‘special treatment,’ but her claim was rejected by the PDEA.
The National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL), which is notorious for only representing suspected and known terrorist personalities in court, also called on Remulla to resign over the issue of “conflict of interest.”
The demand for Remulla’s resignation was seconded by CPP trolls and its supporters in the social media.
Resignation call, rejected
But the effort by the CPP and its support groups and allies to force Remulla out of the DOJ has not gained any traction, with PBBM standing by with him during this very difficult moment.
PBBM firmly rejected the call for Remulla’s resignation, saying it has “no basis” as the incident of his son’s arrest has nothing to do with his job as justice secretary.
“You call for somebody to resign if he is not doing his job or if he misbehaves in that job,” the President said, a day after news of the arrest came out.
Even the CPP’s leading political ally in Congress, Albay 1st district representative. Edcel Lagman (LP), said he is against the call for Remulla’s resignation.
“As long as Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla does not interfere in the investigation, prosecution, and/or adjudication of the reported drug offense of his son Juanito Jose Remulla III, there is no reason for him to resign on account of his son’s offense,” Lagman said in a statement.
“While we cannot choose our relatives, we can choose not to intervene on their behalf for violation of the law,” he added.
Prosecutor Chris Flosemer Gonzales, regional spokesman for Region 6 of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (RTF6-ELCAC), also said the task force is not only rejecting any call for Remulla’s resignation but is also standing in “solidarity” with him.
“The Secretary of Justice is now the target of a concerted and persistent black propaganda from persons, groups, and organizations that have been at the receiving end of the relentless and focused anti-terrorism and counter-insurgency campaign spearheaded by Secretary Remulla.
“The Secretary’s detractors have gathered and have joined the bandwagon calling for the Secretary’s resignation.
“We categorically denounce the malicious imputations and character assassination being hurled against Justice Remulla.
“He and his family do not deserve the vilification and the ad hominem attacks,” Gonzales said.
“Our Justice Secretary knows where to put himself in this situation. As the Justice Secretary, he submits the matter to the justice system and he has categorically stated that he will let due process and the justice system take its proper course,” Gonzales added in a statement released last October 14, 2022.
Parents groups whose children have been turned into terrorist armed fighters by the CPP also rallied to the side of Remulla, who has been with them in trying to regain custody of their children thru legal means.