MANILA -Crying abuse of power against the Duterte administration, detained Senator Leila De Lima on Monday reiterated her plea for release before the Supreme Court, asserting that her prosecution for drug charges was "persecution, not prosecution."

In a 64-page memorandum summarizing her arguments, De Lima, one of President Duterte's most vocal critics, called on the high court to “stop the abuse of power” by officials responsible for the “false charges” filed against her.

Detained for nearly two months now at the national police headquarters, De Lima again asserted her innocence.

In her pleading, De Lima accused government of using “the strong arm of the law” to persecute her, as no less than President Duterte had linked her to the illegal drug trade at the national penitentiary and promised to put her in jail.

“[P]etitioner (De Lima) has come to this court with such haste. For it is only this Court that is capable of stopping such abuse of power," read De Lima's memorandum.

"If they are capable of doing this to a Senator, they are capable of doing this to anyone- unless the Honorable Court acts, and acts now,” her memorandum read.

The senator also cited the lack of evidence against allegations that she collected money from the illegal drug trade at the national penitentiary.

"Petitioner was charged, arrested and continued to be detained for the wrong crime. The government needs to present the dangerous drugs as corpus delicti (evidence)," the memorandum read.

De Lima also debunked allegations that she is seeking special treatment from the Supreme Court even while her petition bypassed several lower court processes and remedies.

She insisted that the Office of the Ombudsman, not the Department of Justice (DOJ), should have handled the preliminary investigation into several complaints against her, and that the Sandiganbayan, not the Regional Trial Court (RTC), has jurisdiction to handle the trial against her, as she is an elected official.

Given this, De Lima asserted that there was “no other plain and speedy remedy” available for her but to elevate her case to the high court.

"This case is not special because it involves a Senator of the
Republic of the Philippines who has been deprived of her liberty. She
is not asking for any special consideration because of her public
position or because she is in jail," the memorandum read.

"She seeks only the fundamental right of every citizen to invoke the
Constitution as shield and sword against government abuse,” read the pleading, filed through De Lima's lawyer, former Solicitor-General Florin Hilbay.

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), which represents respondents to De Lima's case, meanwhile argued that the senator's petition must be dismissed outright due to forum shopping and
violation of hierarchy of courts.

The OSG filed a memorandum on behalf of respondents Muntinlupa RTC Executive Judge and Branch 204 Presiding Judge Juanita
Guerrero, the judge who had ordered De Lima's arrest, and respondent police officials, led by Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald Dela Rosa and PNP Custodial
Service Unit head Superintendent Philip Philipps.

The OSG stressed that the RTC must first resolve De Lima’s motion that sought to quash the criminal information, before she could elevate her case to the Court of Appeals (CA).

Only if unable to seek a favorable ruling at the lower court should De Lima elevate her pleading to the Court of Appeals, and then the SC.

Solicitor General Jose Calida also maintained that the cases against
De Lima are not political in nature, stressing that she should be held
accountable for a criminal act she knowingly and willingly committed.

De Lima also took the chance to seek the High Court's intervention into Duterte's war on drugs, saying it should "clarify the
rules of engagement” governing the anti-drug campaign.

This would set the parameters for Mr. Duterte’s
war on drugs, adding that “[i]t is only natural to expect a spike of cases brought before the courts involving illegal drugs and public
officers.”

"The President himself has declared the fight against illegal drugs
and corruption as central to his platform of government... it is
important for the honorable court to clarify the rules of engagement,
so to speak, for the benefit of all,” her memorandum read.

De Lima meanwhile admitted she was unable to sign her petition before notary public Maria Cecile Tresvalles-Cabalo, as mandated by the rules, when the latter went to Camp Crame on February 24, the day her arrest.

She, however, insisted that the petition "is as genuine and valid as any other.”

"Due to the fact of the conditions of incarceration that petitioner
was suffering on that day, the act of signing was not done face to
face with notary," her pleading read.

But she said the signature was presented to Cabalo immediately after it was signed. The notary also verified the signature through asking for proof of identification from her staffers, the memo said.