SC denies Pichay plea to lift HDO

The Supreme Court has denied the plea of Surigao del Sur 1st District Rep. Prospero Pichay Jr. to lift the hold departure order issued by the Sandiganbayan in connection with the criminal charges filed against him on the alleged anomalous purchase of the shares of stock of Express Savings Bank, Inc, amounting to P780 million during his term as chair of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).

The SC ruled that Pichay failed to prove that there was grave abuse of discretion on the part of the Sandiganbayan in issuing the HDO in 2016, and in denying the lawmaker’s motion to lift the HDO in resolutions issued March 16, 2018 and June 19, 2018. 

“Criminal prosecutions should be allowed to run their course without undue delay. Pichay, as one facing criminal charges with the People of the Philippines as the offended party, should hold himself amenable to court orders and processes at all times. Otherwise, such orders and processes would serve no purpose if he would be allowed to leave the country, outside the reach of the courts,” the high court held.

“An accused in a criminal case may be issued an HDO, as a valid restriction on their right to travel, so that they may be dealt with in accordance with law,” it said.

In his petition, Pichay argued that the general rule is that the right to travel shall not be impaired and may be restricted only in the interest of national security, public safety, or public health, as may be provided by law.

Pichay asserted that none of the allowable limitations on the right to travel are present in this case.

However, the SC said that while the right to travel and to freedom of movement is a fundamental right guaranteed by the 1987 Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the exercise of such right “is not absolute.”