Palace confirms Ong refusal to accept SC  appointment

Malacañang confirmed Saturday that Sandiganbayan Justice Gregory Ong had turned his appointment by President Gloria Arroyo to the Supreme Court.

Press Secretary Ignacio R. Bunye explained that Sandiganbayan Justice Gregory Ong personally called up the Executive Secretary last July 25.

Bunye said Ong had informed the Office of the President that the anti-graft justice was voluntarily relinquishing the appointment earlier issued for him in order to give the President a free hand to appoint another to the Supreme Court.

"Justice Ong added that while he has heeded the directive of the Supreme Court in its Decision and has thus accordingly sought the judicial correction of his birth certificate to properly reflect his status as a natural born citizen, he did not want his personal predicament to stand in the way of the Supreme Court's functioning as a 15 man tribunal as envisioned by the Constitution," Bunye said.

The concurrent presidential spokeperson said, "Finally, Justice Ong conveyed his sincerest gratitude to the President for initially appointing him to the Supreme Court."