A Boholano congressman has said he is “excited” to review the findings of a prosecutor who allegedly dismissed most of the cyberlibel cases he filed against a social media critic.
Atty. Edgar M. Chatto, who represents the First District of Bohol province, filed 21 cases of cyberlibel against Emmanuel “Willy” Ramasola, a netizen who accused him of corruption and insulted his family on Facebook.
However, according to reports, the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office only found probable cause to file three cases of cyberlibel against Ramasola, and dismissed the rest.
Cong. Chatto told a DYTR radio program hosted by Ardy Araneta-Batoy on January 8, 2024 that he had not yet received a copy of the prosecutor’s decision and was eager to learn the reasons for the dismissal.
He said he would exercise all the legal remedies available to him, including filing a motion for reconsideration or appealing to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
He also said that he was confident that his libel suits had met the four elements of crime required by law.
Chatto, a former governor of Bohol, said he had been the target of tirades from Mr Ramasola for a long time, but had kept his silence and refused to engage with him on social media.
He said he welcomed constructive criticism, but could not tolerate false accusations and personal attacks.
The Boholano lawmaker challenged Mr Ramasola to file corruption cases against him in court, instead of using social media to spread his allegations.
He said he was not “onion-skinned” and had practiced restraint against his critics ever since he joined politics.
Chatto said he only decided to file cases against Mr Ramasola because the technology he used to spread his tirades was something new and harder to defend against.
“Before, if someone attacked you, you could already answer on the radio and make your comment. If someone wrote about you in the newspaper, you could write back and make your explanation,” Cong. Chatto said.
He pointed out that he initiated a regular press briefing every week during his term as Bohol governor. The program was a no-holds-barred discussion of pressing issues in his governance.
The former governor chided the tirades against him on social media because he could not make an explanation, and the newer platforms were not the right venue for serious accusations such as corruption allegations.
He said there were posts against him that were below the belt. For this reason, he filed cyberlibel charges against Mr. Ramasola.
It can be noted that Ramasola started his offensive against some officials in 2019 when he expressed his support for the candidacy of Leoncio Evasco Jr. as governor of Bohol.
When Evasco lost, Ramasola attacked former Gov. Arthur Yap from 2019 to 2022.
After Yap lost in 2022, Ramasola then targeted Mr Chatto. Chatto is an ally of Yap.