Sex video of Leila de Lima: A possible cause for disbarment?
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima perhaps expected that she can breeze through the Commission on Appointments (CA) without much trouble.
De Lima, who took office in 2010, has good reasons to be confident. Both the House of Representatives and the Senate are controlled by allies of her boss, President Benigno Aquino III. However, one woman threw De Lima’s confirmation process in disarray: Sandra Cam.
The president of the Whistleblowers Association of the Philippines first entered public consciousness in 2005 when she claimed that she personally handed jueteng protection money to members of the first family, including then-Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo and the late Negros Occidental Rep. Ignacio “Iggy” Arroyo.
Cam then largely fell out of the spotlight in the succeeding years. In March 2010, Cam appealed for police protection in the wake of the assassination on Wilfredo “Boy” Mayor, a fellow whistleblower.
She also came out and lambasted the Aquino government in its early months for appointing people with ties to jueteng operations to key government posts.
She generated considerable media buzz last month when she claimed that she also has in her possession a list of lawmakers who benefited from businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles’ network of corruption.
De Lima immediately rebuffed her, insinuating that Cam’s source may not be trustworthy.
Last week, Cam submitted a 10-page affidavit before the CA to oppose the justice secretary’s confirmation. According to Cam, De Lima had an illicit affair with Cesar Mancao and her driver Ronnie Dayan. But it turns out that Cam is not yet done with her.
According to the whistleblower, she has with her four sex videos featuring De Lima and her bodyguard and driver. She did not disclose how she obtained the supposed videos.
And while De Lima remained defiant, saying that she would not dignify the whistleblower’s attacks on her, Palace spokeswoman Abigail Valte dissuaded Cam from releasing the video.
What really is De Lima’s civil status? Her official bio in the website of Department of Justice and Commission on Human Rights both say that she has two children though her husband’s name wasn’t listed (his name is Plaridel Bohol, according to Rappler). She has consistently used her maiden name.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel’s Pipol early this year, De Lima revealed that her marriage with Bohol has been annulled for ten years now and that she’s “seeing someone.”
However, she can possibly get disbarred if it’s proven that De Lima is indeed engaging in illicit affairs with married men. One precedent for this was the case of former PBA commissioner Emmanuel “Noli” Eala.
Eala was disbarred by the Supreme Court (SC) in 2007 after it was proven that he carried out an affair with a married woman while he himself is also married.
In their decision, the SC ruled unanimously that Eala should be disbarred for his “conduct that adversely reflects on his fitness to practice law.” Read the full decision here.
Will a similar fate await De Lima? Abangan.
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Great resource. I was researching on Secretary De LIma’s civil status and I found this article useful.
Thanks for reading!
You can also do your research work in Urbiztondo, Pangasinan about De Lima and his alleged driver. Accoordingly, they’re known and oftentimes seen in that municipality.
Her illicit affairs are personal choices ni D5..but of couse it affects her credibility to serve honestly in govenment. The truth of the matter is her involvement in illegal drug trade. Ito yung hinahabol ng Presidente..sad to say, makalkal tlaga lahat sa buhay nya.. as is true sa iba pa.
A poor angel that gave her best to god and country. Used by a bad lover. Still tryed to stop a mad man( rd ).alone unloved by the uninformed. A True woman of god.. Her name used by others