While the camp of Bella Ruby Santos was rejoicing over her acquittal, 43-year-old Renante Pique was in deep grief.
The father of Ella Joy silently got on his motorcycle and drove from their house in Minglanilla town to Cebu City to continue his quest for justice.
“Ganahan ko makigkita sa akong mga abogado. Gusto ko masayod og naa pa ba mi mahimo. (I want to see my lawyers. I want to know if there’s still something we can do),” he said in an interview.
Pique sobbed over the phone when he learned from Cebu Daily News that the case against Santos was dismissed by the court for insufficiency of evidence.
“Wa ko kasabot sa akong gibati. Nakalitan ko. Nahugno gyud mi. Og dili ko makapugong sa paghilak. (I can’t explain my feelings. I’m shocked. My family is devastated. I could not stop myself from crying),” he said.
Pique resigned from his job as section supervisor of Bon Ace Fashion Accessories in Minglanilla in November last year. He couldn’t focus on work due to the ongoing court case in relation to the killing of his younger daughter, Ellah Joy.
He said he’s still hoping they could contest the dismissal of the case against Santos.
“Lami kaayo ikasuko, pero wala mi mahimo. Hangtud duna pa mi mahimo, dili gyud ko mo-undang.
Apan kon wala na, siguro dinhi na lang mi kutob. (I want to get mad, but what else we can do? I will not stop fighting while there’s still something we can do. But if we have no options left, then I think that’s as far as we can go),” he said.
The Pique family has been assisted by the Children Legal’s Bureau, lawyer Inocencio De La Cerna Jr., and a panel of government lawyers from the Cebu Provincial Prosecutors’ Office.
Cebu Provincial Prosecutor Pepita Jane Petralba, in a text message to Cebu Daily News, said the dismissal of the case was non appealable.
“Under the Rules (of Court), only a judgment of a conviction can be subjected to a motion for reconsideration or an appeal,” she said.
Pique said those who killed his daughter can never escape God’s justice.
“Kumbinsido man ko nga si Bella gyud ang nagpatay sa akong anak. Naniid ko sa dagan sa kaso. Wa koy absent sa mga hearings. Sakit kaayo pero itugyan na lang nako sa kahitas-an ang tanan. (I convinced that Bella was the one who killed my daughter. I closely followed the case. I was never absent during the hearings. The outcome of this case is very painful but we leave everything to the Lord),” he said.
Pique’s two remaining children are aged 18 and 12. He and his wife earn a living selling purified drinking water and some fashion accessories.
Pique owns a tricycle on which he placed the name “Ellah Joy” in front.
He said his wife Ligaya was depressed after learning about the court’s ruling.
“Pinangga kaayo namo si Ellah Joy. Dili gyud ko makalimot unsay nahitabo niya. Nadawat naman nako ang iyang kamatayon apan di gyud kalikayan nga mabati nako ang kasakit hangtud karon.
(We loved Ellah Joy very much. I could not forget the manner she was killed. I have accepted what happened but I could not avoid the pain brought about by the incident),” Pique said.