A whiff of legality is all it takes

Sen. Leila de Lima was a staunch critic of the President. And all that was needed was the testimonies of a bunch of convicts to incarcerate her.

Former chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno stood for the independence of the judiciary and earned the ire of the President. It took just a few missing copies of her SALN to undo the vetting done by the Judicial and Bar Council, and the impeachment provision of the Constitution, to remove her.

Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV is the arch critic of the President, and it took just a misplaced application form to revoke his amnesty and revive his rebellion case. His nonbailable  coup d’etat case may also be reopened, and he can be put away, who knows for how long.

The NBI is investigating the supposed “Red October” plot. It is a multibarrel gun that shoots only paint balls. But who needs real bullets to put enemies away?

CRISTINO S. SANTOS, [email protected]