Supreme Court on Aquino's speech: No comment
MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court refused to react to President Aquino's challenge over its decision to strike down his administration's Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).
"The Court has no comment on the President's speech yesterday," the high court's spokesman Theodore Te said in a statement on Tuesday.
In a nationally televised address on Monday, Aquino defended the controversial DAP, a major economic stimulus program unanimously declared by Supreme Court magistrates partly unconstitutional earlier this month.
"Ang panawagan natin sa Korte Suprema: huwag ninyo naman sana kaming hadlangan. Hindi ba dapat kasama namin kayo sa repormang ito?" Aquino said.
WATCH: Aquino tells Supreme Court: DAP is right
"Ang mensahe ko po sa Korte Suprema: Ayaw nating umabot pa sa puntong magbabanggaan ang dalawang magkapantay na sangay ng gobyerno, kung saan kailangan pang mamagitan ng ikatlong sangay ng gobyerno," he said.
Aquino's remarks were deemed threatening to the high court, while some camps said he was only championing projects ought to be funded by DAP.
In a rather detached manner, the youngest Supreme Court magistrate posted a comment on his Twitter account following Aquino's address.
"Supreme Court decisions are published so they can be read and understood carefully," Associate Justice Marvic Leonen said.
Ousted Chief Justice Renato Corona, meanwhile, urged Maria Lourdes Sereno, the current top magistrate, to defend the ruling.
"Sereno should react and defend the institution she represents. It's her duty to do so. She should answer personally," Corona said in a previous report.
The high court in its ruling provided "guidance" without pointing fingers to specific political personalities who should be held liable for the faulty program, but calls for Budget Secretary Florencio Butch Abad's resignation as the DAP's architect mounted after the decision.
Aquino, however, had announced that he turned down Abad's offer to step down.
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