Maguindanao prosecutor's office scores 12 high-profile convictions

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — The Office of the Provincial Prosecutor in Mindanao has successfully prosecuted 12 high-profile cases in as many months, a record for fiscals in the province.

Senior judicial officials told reporters Thursday the 12 convictions between August 15, 2018 to August 12, 2019 is a first for OPP-Maguindanao in the province's five-decade history.

The PPO is led by Rohairah Lao, who has been provincial prosecutor since 2016.

A matrix obtained Thursday from Regional Trial Court Branch 27 indicated that the 12 convictions include a father who raped his three daughters, and two murder cases. Other cases involved violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act and unauthorized possession of firearms. 

"Credit has to go to law enforcement agencies that worked hard to build airtight cases against offenders and to all personnel of our office," Lao said Thursday.

Lao said Maguindanao's prosecutors won three more convictions on Wednesday, the first for the last quarter of 2019.

"We hope to secure more in the coming months," she said.

Maguindanao, like other provinces in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, has a poor conviction record due to a culture of “rido,” or vendetta killings over clan pride and honor.

Witnesses have also been hesitant to cooperate with authorities, especially in cases involving large clans led by political warlords.

Abdullah Cusain, acting executive secretary of Bangsamoro Chief Minister Hadji Ahod Ebrahim, said Thursday the BARMM leadership got elated with what could be a landmark achievement by the Maguindanao PPO.

"These are the achievements that can complement the efforts of the BARMM government to restore normalcy in underdeveloped areas in the region," Cusain said.