Impeachment Hearing
6 HEADLINES
PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY November 16 - 30 , 2017
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Impeachment Hearing
After realizing she had been “ misled ” by Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on the supposed ratification of an order and other issues , Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo-de Castro said she sought clarification from the chief magistrate but received none .
It was one of the grievances raised by De Castro yesterday before the House justice committee at the resumption of hearings on the impeachment complaint against the Chief Justice .
The committee , chaired by Oriental Mindoro Rep . Reynaldo Umali , was trying to establish probable cause to impeach Sereno for culpable violation of the Constitution , betrayal of public trust and corruption , based on a complaint filed by lawyer Lorenzo Gadon .
De Castro said Sereno unilaterally created an office in the judiciary – an act tantamount to usurpation of Congress ’ legislative power and a clear disregard for the decision of her 14 other colleagues in the Supreme Court .
“ The chief justice cannot create an office because it is a legislative power ,” De Castro told the committee .
The senior magistrate
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De Castro says Sereno misled SC justices
likewise testified she was “ taken aback ” when Sereno invited her and the other justices in November 2012 – just a few months after her appointment as chief justice in August – and “ made it appear ” the judiciary was reviving the Regional Court Administrative Office ( RCAO ).
Digging deeper into the matter , De Castro said she discovered that Sereno had actually created a Judiciary Decentralized Office in Region 7 , which was “ not sanctioned ” at all by the full SC , unlike the RCAO which has a complete set of officers .
She said she learned from now retired clerk of court Enriqueta Vidal that Sereno “ misled ” her staff into declaring to her categorically that the 15 justices “ ratified ” her administrative order creating RCAO , when in fact no ratification had taken place .
“ She ( Sereno ) cannot do it alone . She is only one vote ,” De Castro pointed out . “ She didn ’ t reply to my memos . She didn ’ t even reply during our deliberations . This is a subtle way of overturning the court ,” she added , when asked of Sereno ’ s reaction when confronted .
But she declined to answer when asked by committee members if the SC chief could have directly violated the Charter , and thus could be held liable – or impeachable – for “ culpable violation of the 1987 Constitution .”
“ I can ’ t answer that question ,” a smiling De Castro told House Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas , who pointed out that “ nilabag ng punong hukom ang konstitusyon dahil ang napag desisyunan ng buong Korte Suprema ay ginampanan niya lamang ng sarili niya ( The Chief Justice violated the Constitution because she arrogated to herself the entire court ’ s task of making a decision ).”
With De Castro at yesterday ’ s hearing was Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez .
House Deputy Speaker Gwendolyn Garcia and Leyte Rep . Vicente Veloso – a former Court of Appeals justice – also made the same observations .
“ There was culpable violation of the Constitution because the resolution didn ’ t reflect what really transpired ,” Garcia said .
De Castro – a former Sandiganbayan justice , DOJ state counsel and SC staffer – also told Garcia “ no one ” among her peers tried to
correct her when she called Sereno ’ s attention to the “ misleading and misnomer ” administrative order creating a redundant office .
“ There was completely no reply . Bakit nung kiniquestion ko iyun hindi siya sumasagot ? Tahimik ho siya . Kami kami lang namang mga justices ang nag-uusap ( Why was she not answering when I was questioning her . She was quiet . It ’ s only wethe justices who were talking among ourselves ). What she intends to do is to create another office ,” she related .
On another impeachment charge , De Castro also bared to Umali ’ s committee Sereno ’ s “ falsification ” of a temporary restraining order that could have benefited more party-list groups other than the senior citizens party .
“ I explicitly recommended a TRO . It was very specific . It pertains to their disqualification . Fourteen party-list groups were proclaimed , but when I submitted it in the afternoon it ballooned to 53 ,” she recalled .
“ I didn ’ t get a positive response ( from Sereno ). I received a TRO which was not my recommendation ,” De Castro stated , noting that the TRO ’ s “ tenor ” expanded to include directing Comelec to “ stop proclaiming all partylist groups ” instead of just one – for senior citizens .
“ It is very basic that you cannot include just anyone . That will violate the right of others to due process . They will be deprived of their representation in Congress ,” she emphasized .
In the same senior citizens case , De Castro told Fariñas the SC “ upheld ” her position .
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