Sandigan justices won’t bury hatchet

Despite reconciliation efforts by no less than Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr., Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Francis Garchitorena and Justice Anacleto Badoy have vowed to file administrative charges against each other.

"They refused to bury the hatchet," said a highly reliable source at the Supreme Court (SC) who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They decided to bury the hatchet in each other’s back."

The source revealed that after a "strictly confidential," four-hour meeting at Davide’s chambers, the two justices refused to shake hands and ignored compromise pacts forged by mediating SC justices.

Davide summoned Garchitorena and Badoy last Monday to the meeting which was also attended by the high tribunal’s oversight committee, a body that has supervision over non-judicial matters such as the Garchitorena-Badoy spat.

The oversight committee is composed of SC Justices Josue Bellosillo, Bernardo Pardo, Arturo Buena, Consuelo Santiago and Angelina Gutierrez.

The source said some committee members proposed that both Garchitorena and Badoy either take a leave of absence or resign from their posts so as to salvage the credibility of the anti-graft court.

But, the source theorized, both justices apparently feel that taking a leave may appear to be a concession to defeat while resignation is definitely out of the question since both magistrates are set to retire in two or three years yet.

Other compromise pacts proposed by members of the committee fell on deaf ears and both Sandiganbayan justices continued with behind-the-scenes maneuvers to get back at each other, the source said.

Davide reported to other high court justices what transpired during the marathon meeting during an en banc meeting yesterday afternoon.

But the two Sandiganbayan justices’ threat to file administrative charges against each other has led the court to defer the imposition of penalties against them.

Instead, the source said, the SC has opted to wait for the administrative charges both jurists have vowed to file.

The SC insider added the matter was complicated when two other Sandiganbayan justices who attended the meeting — Justices Ricardo Ilarde and Teresita de Castro, both of the third division which Badoy chairs — appeared to have sided with Garchitorena.

Ilarde and De Castro supposedly confirmed Garchitorena’s claim that Badoys is "incompetent, lazy and is often absent and tardy."

Garchitorena first aired the claim publicly after Badoy accused him of pressuring him to resign the chairmanship of the third division, ostensibly because Garchitorena wanted to gain the chairmanship of the division.

But the presiding justice denied the charge and said it was Ilarde who suggested that Badoy resign because of his alleged inability to deal with the division’s case load.

Garchitorena also accused Badoy of incompetence and inefficiency in the discharge of his duties as division chairman.

Meanwhile, Garchitorena inhibited himself from hearing a graft case involving Badoy’s brother Solomon, who is a trustee of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).

"Considering the recent events which have affected (my) relationship with the Honorable Anacleto D. Badoy Jr., who is a brother of the principal accused, (I) hereby (inhibit myself) from any further proceeding hereon in order to avoid any suspicion, misrepresentation and misimpression of any event which might take place in the instant matter," Garchitorena said in a motion for inhibition.

Garchitorena signed the motion shortly before the meeting with Davide and the oversight committee. The graft case against Solomon Badoy will be sent back to the docket section for re-raffling to another division.

Solomon Badoy was charged with graft before the Sandiganbayan on Dec. 3, 1997 and was conditionally arraigned on July 21, 1999 because of his request to travel to the US to attend a religious meeting.

He was charged with misusing P2.4 million in government funds intended for the construction of 150 homes for rebel returnees, as he and two other co-accused allegedly failed to account for the money. - With a report from Romel Bagares