DOJ revives libel case vs anti-Arroyo bishop

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Justice on Monday revived the four-year-old libel case filed against Lingayen Archbishop Oscar Cruz by a group of lady employees of PAGCOR whom the prelate called "pitiful GROs (guest relations officers)" in a published article. In a nine-page decision, Justice secretary Raul Gonzalez reversed on review an initial finding of prosecutors that dismissed the libel complaint filed by the group of female Pagcor employees. The complainants filed the case after Cruz, a known anti-gambling advocate and a vocal critic of the Arroyo administration, branded them in an article as “pitiful GRos" who were forced to entertain First Gentleman Jose Miguel “Mike" Arroyo and his friends during Mr Arroyo’s birthday bash in 2004. Cruz’s one-page article entitled "Sad and Saddening" was transmitted to the media by telefax and was published on various tabloids and broadsheets. Gonzalez said Cruz "acted with reckless disregard" of whether the report was true or not as he did not conduct an inquiry on the veracity of the information he received. He said that under contemporary cultural standards, the word GRO has become synonymous and used sparingly or alternately with the words "hostess, bar girl and prostitutes." "That the word 'pitiful' was added thereto did not in anyway remove the defamatory character that the term 'GRO' connotes," the DOJ resolution stated. Under current rules, libel is a criminal offense and is punishable by imprisonment. Cruz, on the other hand, was unfazed by the DOJ’s resolution. “This issue is very well expected. The only problem with this is that they are making me too big than I really am. They’re giving me more importance than what I deserve," he said. Cruz maintained that the women were made to wear sexy clothes and were made up in one beauty salon inside the former Holiday Inn in Manila where Pagcor has an entertainment center. “These are the days when power is above reason and wealth is above truth as far as government is concerned. No matter what happens, they lose," he said. - GMANews.TV