SC cuts off its head and UP Carillon bells are heard again

MANILA, Philippines — A historic decision was met with a loud ringing from an age-old tower.

Bells atop Carillon Tower at the University of the Philippines Diliman campus on Friday played "Bayan Ko" to condemn the Supreme Court majority's decision to boot out Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.

The decision came despite warnings that it would be an overstepping of the power of Congress to impeach officials. As a response, the state university bells ran for an hour, campus radio dzUP reported.

The Carillon bells also played the same patriotic tune in September 2017 when the same Supreme Court ruled in favor of President Rodrigo Duterte's order to have late dictator Ferdinand Marcos buried at the Heroes' Cemetery or Libingan ng mga Bayani.

The Carillon, erected in the 1950s based on a design by National Artist for Architecture Juan Nakpil. It then went on to become among the landmarks the university is known for.

For a time, however, the neglected bells were silent pending restoration.