Drilon laments Sandigan’s slow disposition of cases

MANILA, Philippines - Senate President Franklin Drilon lamented on Thursday that it takes the Sandiganbayan an average of seven years to dispose of a case, from the filing of the information to the promulgation of judgment.

“This dismal rate of disposition reflects the heavily clogged dockets of the court, given that the cases filed before it has multiplied over the years. Such a drawn-out process of litigation is injustice in itself,” Drilon said.

In an effort to help speed up the disposition of cases, the Senate is now taking up a bill that would amend Republic Act 1606 or the law creating the Sandiganbayan.

Senate Bill 2138, which was endorsed by the committee on justice and human rights chaired by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III, was filed in substitution of two bills filed by Drilon and Sen. Teofisto Guingona III.

In his co-sponsorship speech, Drilon said that the inability to swiftly achieve the objective for which the Sandiganbayan was created could be attributed to its systemic limitations.

R.A. 2138 was enacted in 1978 and Drilon said that it is about time this is amended.

“As a result, this public accountability weapon, which used to be tagged as a frontrunner in defeating corruption, now occupies the last spot in the race toward good governance,” Drilon said.

“If we are to outrun graft and corruption, it is imperative that we resuscitate and recondition our existing prosecutorial and adjudicatory institutions against this opponent,” he said.

Drilon said that three innovations would be introduced in the Sandiganbayan Law that would help bring about a faster disposition of cases.

The first innovation under the measure is what was described as the “justice-designate” system, which would involve the amendment of Section 5 of the Sandiganbayan Charter that currently requires the presence of all three members of a division before a case could be heard.

Drilon said the individual members of a division would be allowed to hear and receive evidence, and resolve incidents arising during such session for the day, in behalf of the division to which he or she belongs.

To further expedite the proceedings, the measure likewise allows session to be held upon the attendance of two members of a division, instead of all three, as presently required.

“Nevertheless, consistent with the principle of collegiality, all three members of the division shall be required to deliberate and decide the case, after all pieces of evidence have been presented. This new concept is expected to accelerate the pace of case disposition, with minimal cost to the government,” Drilon said.

Another provision introduced in the bill involves the streamlining of the Sandiganbayan’s jurisdiction, which would enable the court to concentrate its resources in resolving the most significant cases filed against public officials.

An amendment to Section 4 of the law was introduced that would lead to the transferring of jurisdiction over cases that are classified as “minor” to the regional trial courts, which Drilon said “have the sufficient capability and competence to handle these cases.”

Minor cases pertain to those that do not allege any damage or bribe arising from the same or closely related transactions or acts not exceeding P1 million.

Drilon said around 60 percent of cases filed before the Sandiganbayan constitute minor cases.