(33) Alonte v. Savellano, Jr.; GR No.

131652

Topic: Intervention of the Offended Party

Facts: An information for rape was filed against petitioners Bayani M. Alonte, an incumbent Mayor of Bian, Laguna, and
Buenaventura Concepcion predicated on a complaint filed by Juvie-lyn Punongbayan. The information stated that Alonte,
after giving complainant-child drinking water which made her dizzy and weak, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and
feloniously have carnal knowledge with her against her will and consent, to her damage and prejudice. The accused
Buenaventura "Wella" Concepcion without having participated as principal or accessory assisted in the commission of the
offense brought her to the rest house of Alonte and after receiving the amount of P1,000.00 left her alone with him, who
subsequently raped her.

During the pendency of the petition for change of venue, or on 25 June 1997, Juvie-lyn Punongbayan, assisted by her
parents and counsel, executed an affidavit of desistance. It would appear that immediately following the arraignment, the
prosecution presented private complainant Juvielyn Punongbayan followed by her parents. During this hearing,
Punongbayan affirmed the validity and voluntariness of her affidavit of desistance. She stated that she had no intention of
giving positive testimony in support of the charges against Alonte and had no interest in further prosecuting the action.
Punongbayan confirmed: (i) That she was compelled to desist because of the harassment she was experiencing from the
media, (ii) that no pressures nor influence were exerted upon her to sign the affidavit of desistance, and (iii) that neither she
nor her parents received a single centavo from anybody to secure the affidavit of desistance.

Issue: Whether or not the submission of the Affidavit of Desistance by the offended party warrants the dismissal of the
criminal case against the accused.

Ruling: No, the submission of the Affidavit of Desistance does not warrant the dismissal of the case.

Firstly, the affidavit of desistance of Juvie-Lyn Punongbayan, does not contain any statement that disavows the veracity of
her complaint against petitioners but merely seeks to "be allowed to withdraw" her complaint and to discontinue with the
case for varied other reasons. As explained in People v. Junio:

Thus, we have declared that at most the retraction is an afterthought which should not be given probative value. It would
be a dangerous rule to reject the testimony taken before the court of justice simply because the witness who has given it
later on changed his mind for one reason or another. Such a rule will make a solemn trial a mockery and place the
investigation at the mercy of unscrupulous witnesses. Because affidavits of retraction can easily be secured from poor and
ignorant witnesses, usually for monetary consideration, the Court has invariably regarded such affidavits as exceedingly
unreliable

Secondly, an affidavit of desistance by itself, even when construed as a pardon in the so-called "private crimes," is not a
ground for the dismissal of the criminal case once the action has been instituted. The affidavit, nevertheless, may, as so
earlier intimated, possibly constitute evidence whose weight or probative value, like any other piece of evidence, would be
up to the court for proper evaluation.