Ballos welcomes P2M libel suit filed by Bolante
ROXAS CITY – Liberal Party (LP) spokesperson and blocktime commentator Abe Ballos said he welcomes the P2 million libel suit filed by former Agriculture Usec. Jocelyn “Jocjoc” Bolante against him before the provincial prosecutor’s office at the hall of justice here last week.
Ballos has yet to receive a copy of the libel complaint but he said the LP will provide him with lawyers to defend his case.
In his 13-page affidavit-complaint, Bolante said, as private citizen, he is filing criminal charge for libel against Ballos of Patag, Lawa-an, Roxas City, a radio commentator of the program “Ang Kamatu-oran” aired over Bombo Radyo-Roxas every Friday.
According to him last October 2, 2009 he personally heard Ballos’s libelous remarks against his person over his program at Bombo Radyo-Roxas.
Bolante said that Ballos’s broadcast was a malicious imputation against him of a crime, or a vice or defect, real or imaginary, or any act, omission, condition, status, or circumstances tending to cause his dishonor, discredit or contempt, in reckless disregard of whether such imputations are true or false, as it portrayed him as a criminal, a thief of the people’s money; criminally guilty of corruption, of corrupting not only the local public officials but of corrupting the students as well.
Bolante claimed that Ballos also said that he pollutes the minds of the youth, teaching these students how to adopt a corrupt system of governance; criminal guilty of bribery, for distributing the money.
“On account of said defamatory attack against my character, reputation, honesty, integrity and virtue, I was exposed to public hatred, contempt, humiliation and ridicule. Such that, I suffered wounded feelings, moral shock, besmirched reputation, serious anxiety and similar injuries,” Bolante said in his affidavit of complaint.
Bolante, who was accused as the brains behind the P728 million fertilizer scam, denied he is guilty of the hullabaloo saying that he never been convicted in court.
