"This is a disgrace to the Filipino nation. This is the highest form of injustice in the country and I’m really, really ashamed to be a Filipino." This was part of the statement unleashed by Ms. Vivian Hultman, mother of slain teenager Maureen Hultman, to the government who facilitated the release of her daughter’s convicted killer, Claudio Teehankee Jr. She further added, "I hope they can sleep at night."

There was anger, disgust and sadness in her voice last night when she was interviewed live from Sweden where the family moved after the resolution of Maureen Hultman's murder case in the 1990s. That's where they were making a fresh start on their lives, trying to forget the harrowing murder of their daughter, her friend Roland John Chapman and the wounding of Jussi Leino in 1991 in an exclusive neighborhood in Manila. The courts later convicted Claudio Teehankee, Jr. for the crimes and sentenced him to one count of reclusion perpetua and one count of reclusion temporal, which
carry a jail term of 20 to 40 years and 12 to 20 years, respectively. Justice has been served.

But the whole nation was shocked to learn that Teehankee was secretly, sneakily granted executive clemency last week by who else, the ever so inept Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo! And even more shocking is how administration officials (most notably Ermita and Gonzales) have been trying to cover up the incident by blatant LIES! If these people had the nose of Pinnochio, it would have stretched the length of the archipelago with this incident alone! Contrary to their claims that consultations with the aggrieved parties and the prosecutor of the case were done before the granting of the pardon (a requirement under the law), the Hultman's vehemently denied receiving any notice that a pardon by the president was being considered (see video below). Had they known, they said, they would have done everything to oppose it. Atty. Dennis Villa Ignacio, special prosecutor of the case, similarly denied receiving any notice. He would have opposed it as well, just as he did when another influential convict, Rolito Go, applied for pardon.

This is another example of how the rich, powerful and influential have a different set of rules in this country, and how a government, led by a president of questionable integrity and judgment, further perpetrates such. Teehankee is the son of the late former Chief Justice Claudio Teehankee Sr and brother of former Justice Undersecretary Manuel Teehankee (now the country's rep to the WTO), an Arroyo appointee. No matter how government officials deny that this executive clemency is the result of political power and influence, nobody in his right mind will believe them. We aren't that stupid!

Government officials point out that it is the sole prerogative of the president to grant executive clemency under the Constitution, and no once can question it, not even the courts. Yes, that's true. But we are not questioning her right in this case, but rather, her CONSCIENCE!

I agree with Mrs. Hultman. This is a disgrace to the Filipino nation. Though I have written many posts in this blog where I proudly exclaimed how proud I am to be Filipino, with this case I feel the exact opposite. With head bowed, I have to admit that this incident makes me ashamed to be a Filipino.