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PEOPLE Vs. Eduardo Garcia

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. EDUARDO GARCIA y DULAY, accused-appellant.

G.R. Nos. 120387-88 | 1998-03-31

D E C I S I O N

PANGANIBAN, J:

Affidavits of desistance, especially those extracted from poor, unlettered, young and gullible witnesses long after the trial is over, are generally frowned upon. Testimony solemnly given before a court of justice and subjected to the test of cross-examination cannot just be set aside, and a new trial granted on the basis of perfunctory and pro forma affidavits that obviously were not prepared directly by the witnesses themselves but by some legally trained individuals. The credibility of trials and the pursuit of truth cannot be placed at the unilateral disposal of timorous witnesses or made dependent on...