The ongoing efforts to extradite expelled Representative Arnolfo Teves, Jr. casts a glaring contrast between ordinary suspects and influential/powerful ones. While government authorities appear bent on bringing him to justice, it took a high-profile massacre, the killing of then Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and nine others in March 2023, for allegations of other criminal acts committed earlier to be levelled against him. Still, 18 months have already passed and yet he remains outside the custody of law enforcement authorities—this while he has already been arrested in Timor-Leste and our petition for his extradition has already been granted.
Had he been an ordinary suspect, he would probably be in jail right now.
While everyone charged of committing a crime is entitled to the best legal defense possible, our prevailing justice system simply is not able to provide this to everyone. Defendants who can afford to pay the best defense lawyers can get the “best” legal defense possible; those who do not have this capacity get court-appointed public defenders. Even with the best of intentions, public defenders will be weighed down by the cost of mounting even just a “good” legal defense.
As long as there is a great divide between the rich and the poor, justice would tend to be lopsided in favor of the former. And since poverty can lead to petty crimes out of necessity, the poor sometimes find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Advancing their economic interests to enable them to escape poverty would not only give them a chance to lead crime-free lives, but they would also have a better chance to defend themselves should they be accused of crimes.
Of course, increasing the resources allocated to the Public Attorney’s Office would be a good interim solution toward balancing the scales of justice.
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