De Castro, Peralta, Bersamin on chief justice shortlist
MANILA, Philippines (Updated 12:40 p.m.) — The Judicial and Bar Council on Friday released its shortlist of candidates for the next chief justice.
Associate Justice Teresita De Castro and Diosdado Peralta received six votes each, while Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin received five votes, according to the Supreme Court Public Information Office.
Two other candidates, Associate Justice Andres Reyes Jr. and Davao Regional Trial Court Virginia Tejano-Ang, also received votes but these were not enough to land them on the shortlist.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, a member of the JBC by virtue of his position, said Ang had been disqualified from consideration.
Guevarra said that Ang was disqualified “because of an adverse finding and recommendation in her administrative case.”
Impeachment complaint
De Castro, Peralta and Bersamin face an impeachment complaint that opposition lawmakers filed on Thursday.
The complaint cited their voting on the quo warranto petition that removed Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice as a supposed betrayal of public trust.
The complaint is not likely to prosper.
RELATED: Arroyo wants impeachment complaint vs 7 SC justices expedited
Guevarra, in a message to reporters said: “[The] mere filing of an impeachment complaint is not enough to disqualify.”
“It is not yet considered an impeachment case, until it is affirmatively acted upon by the appropriate house committee,” Guevarra added.
Applicants’ stands on key issues
Bersamin
If Bersamin is appointed chief justice, he will hold the position until October 18, 2019.
During his public interview last week, he said that he would expand the distribution of the court’s decisions to the public, improve the infrastructure of trial courts and enhance the capacity of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines to discipline lawyers.
Asked on the increase of the assets in his wealth declaration documents, he said those were from allowances received as a member of electoral tribunals and from cash deposits by his businesswoman wife.
Bersamin also told the JBC panel that in his years serving the judiciary, he “never felt [pressured]” by other government branches.
“They have been respectful to judges and justices. This is demonstrated by how the Supreme Court has arrived at each decision, especially at sensitive cases like [Disbursement Acceleration Program] and [Priority Development Assistance Fund],” he added.
De Castro
De Castro has been serving the Philippine justice system for more than four decades, a feat acknowledged by the JBC panel during her public interview.
While she is due to retire from the SC in October, De Castro said a potentially short stint as chief justice would not deter her from imlementing reforms at the SC.
“It’s not like as if I’m going to start working on projects that will benefit the Supreme Court today. I have been doing this since 2009. I have accomplished much already. There are projects set for completion within this short period and I can start projects which may go beyond my term,” she said.
De Castro landed in the headlines because of her exchanges with ousted chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. She told the panel:, however “I may have raised objections to some of her official actions but it was done through proper procedure and it did not affect our personal relationship.”
Peralta
Peralta is the youngest among the three on the shortlist. If appointed chief justice, he is expected to hold the position until March 27, 2022.
The JBC asked the justice, who wrote the decision o the case, on the controversial ruling that allowed the burial of the ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos' remains at the heroes’ cemetery.
Peralta insisted that Filipinos should move on from the issue. “I hope that issue has already been buried. Whatever is in the past, we have to move on. And I think we are now moving on,” he said.
When asked if he thinks his decision brought unity to the nation, Peralta answered in affirmative. “I think so. We do not anymore hear complaints about the burial of Marcos. We are now focused on other issues confronting the nation.”
(Editor's note: An earlier version of this story reported that Reyes and Ang did not get votes. Justice Secretary Guevarra has since clarified that they got votes but not enough to make the shortlist)
- Latest
- Trending
