A regional trial court in Bago City, Negros Occidental, acquitted broadcaster Larry Concepcion of a libel charge filed by former Valladolid Mayor Romel P. Yogore — now a convicted graft offender.
This decision, which comes after the Sandiganbayan upheld Yogore’s graft conviction, adds to his mounting legal setbacks.
In a seven-page decision dated April 2, 2025, Regional Trial Court Branch 62 Presiding Judge Irene Joyce T. Teves-Valleser ruled that the prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Concepcion committed libel under Article 355 of the Revised Penal Code.
The case stemmed from Concepcion’s alleged defamatory statements during his program Pulso Sang Banwa on DYAF Radio Veritas on August 6, 2010.
Yogore accused Concepcion of attacking his integrity by referencing the alleged mishandling of a P4-million farm-to-market road project and likening him to a “crocodile,” a colloquial term for corrupt officials.
However, the court noted that the prosecution failed to present the actual recording of the broadcast, a crucial piece of evidence.
“Although the prosecution witnesses have quoted in their affidavits the alleged defamatory statements of the accused, which were said in the Ilonggo dialect, these are insufficient for purposes of proving the accused’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, especially since the accused and his witness have refuted the accuracy of these purported libelous statements as quoted,” Valleser wrote.
The court emphasized the need for the “highest grade of evidence” under the best evidence rule, which in this case would have been the original broadcast.
“It must be remembered that under the best evidence rule, what is required is the highest grade of evidence to prove a disputed fact, which in this case should have been the actual radio broadcast of the accused,” she said.
The court also determined that malice—the essential element of libel—did not appear. Given that the case involved commentary on a public official, the court guarantees the constitutional protections on free speech, particularly in discussions about matters of public interest.
After over a decade of legal proceedings, dating back to Concepcion’s not guilty plea in 2012, the court reaffirmed his constitutional presumption of innocence.
Concepcion, now a broadcaster at Brigada News FM-Bacolod, shared the emotional and financial toll the case took on him.
“It’s really difficult because instead of just looking for money for your daily needs, you get delayed and can’t sleep thinking about how you’ll come up with bail that time at P10,000. It’s really hard,” he said.
“All the threats and false accusations were just meant to make things harder for me in my situation as a poor broadcaster,” he added.
Accuser-turned-convict
This acquittal comes amid the Sandiganbayan’s ongoing efforts to enforce its final ruling against Yogore.
The anti-graft court issued an arrest warrant for the former Valladolid mayor after it upheld his conviction for violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Associate Justice Zaldy Trespeces signed the arrest warrant on December 13, 2024, and authorities confirmed it on February 12, 2025.
In 2019, Yogore had received a conviction for unlawfully procuring construction materials worth P230,395 for a rural health unit in 2008 without public bidding.
The supplier, JB Nieve Hardware and Construction Supplies, belonged to his brother-in-law, Jonie Nieve.
Concepcion had filed the original complaint with the Ombudsman-Visayas in 2010, citing “unbearable” corruption.
The anti-graft body found Yogore liable in 2017, and he received a conviction in 2019. Seven co-accused were acquitted, while one pleaded guilty to a lesser offense and paid a P5,000 fine.
Yogore’s appeals to the Sandiganbayan and the Supreme Court were denied, with the high court’s March 2024 resolution becoming final and executory.
Police attempted to serve the arrest warrant at Yogore’s residence in Barangay Poblacion, Valladolid, but they discovered he had already moved out.
Yogore remains at large as of press time.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, maintains a personal blog on Medium, and is the communications officer of Hope Builders Organization Negros Island.