Manila to pursue 'airtight' case against Sulu sultan

The Philippine Department of Justice will continue building an “airtight” case against Sulu sultan Jamalul Kiram III and will also see if his extradition to Malaysia to face charges here is possible, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said today.
 
De Lima said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), which is under her department’s jurisdiction, is working on gathering evidence “to determine what charges” may be filed against the sultan, whose followers have been engaging Malaysian forces in Sabah, where they had gone to press their claim.
 
This is in compliance with President Benigno Aquino III’s earlier orders to investigate the sultan for possible violations of the constitution and the Revised Panel Code.
 
Kiram announced a unilateral ceasefire for his followers in Sabah in response to calls by United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon for an end to the violence and for negotiations to resolve the crisis.
 
As for the extradition of Kiram, which Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said they might request of the Philippines, De Lima said the “priority, insofar as Philippin laws are concerned, we have primary jurisdiction.”
 
However, she added, if Kiram “violated Malaysian law, we can discuss if he can be sent there to face charges... I suppose they violated Malaysian laws.”
 
"We will study if extradition is possible... There might be some mechanisms... I would not know," she added.

- InterAksyon