They all have one thing in common: Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño had a hand - in one way or another - in the conviction of these people.
Jovencito Zuño has been chief prosecutor since the administration of President Fidel Ramos. Zuño got involved with the high profile criminal cases back then (and there are many high profile cases during the 90s). His involvement in the investigation and prosecution of a criminal case instills a sense of fear among the accused, and a sense of security among the public.
But credibility of Zuño is now tarnished, because of the alleged bribery in the Alabang boys case. That is too bad, because Zuño is one of the few good men we have left in the government.
About the bribery case, I take it with a grain of salt. As Chief Prosecutor Zuño said, show the public the circumstance of the bribery try against him. So far, no one has come up with a smoking gun. Moreover, his procedure of review of the Alabang Boys case was all by the book. The proper procedure for the buy-bust operation was not religiously followed. As such, he had no choice but to dismiss the case - the three accused still have constitutional rights, you know. Thus, Zuño is receiving an undeserved flak.
And that is the problem with the whole forced leave. The post of chief state prosecutor is a career service position, which means that an administrative case should be filed against Zuño in order to be legally suspended. But in this time when the issue is burning hot, the powers-that-be deem it more convenient to force upon someone like Zuño a leave of absence. Too bad for Zuño, who is not in anyway within the inner circle of the ruling power - his 30 plus years of government service be damned. What a way to reward someone for all his years of service to the public.
Photo: Kate Williams, Flickr, Creative Commons
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