MANILA, Philippines - Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno attended President Aquino's State of the Nation Address on Monday despite the chief executive's nationally televised speech challenging the Supreme Court's ruling on the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).
Sereno, who was wearing a grey terno, applauded at certain points of Aquino's address but did not react whenever the President would cite the government's achievements using funds released under the DAP.
Aquino cited the Department of Interior and Local Government's "Operation Lambat" beefing up police checkpoints in the National Capital Region. He said the operation resulted in a drop in murder and homicide rates from 31 cases to only 22 cases weekly.
He said plans are in place to hire more cops and improve the police force's equipment, but the high court's decision declaring DAP unconstitutional forces the government to look for other sources of funding.
"Nasa ilalim nga po sana ng DAP ang pondong pangkagamitan, pero dahil hindi ito na-obligate bago bumaba ang desisyon ng Korte Suprema, kailangan po nating maghanap ng pagkukunan ng karagdagang pondo," Aquino said.