The wisdom of judges

When an Honorable Judge from the Metropolitan Trial Court decides to give a former Cabinet Secretary a piece of his mind, it is clear that the once mighty and influential don’t always get their way. Mike Defensor may remain a favored “son” of Malacañang but outside the palace walls, it is clear that people are no longer willing to give room for conduct or legal action that adds burden and complications to our judicial system.

In a way, this latest development may be prophetic in terms of what members and pariahs of the Arroyo administration can expect once they are out of power.

Judge Lorredo may have written his commentary in an “advisory or suggestive tone” but it is evident that the Judge or the Court is not pleased at wasting time over what may qualify as a nuisance suit, or being forced into Judicial and legislative acrobatics just to avoid the embarrassment of sending an “innocent man” to prison even before his trial.

Clearly the case and the complications that followed in the perjury case filed by Defensor greatly inconvenienced the courts, the arresting party, the entire Western Police headquarters, and the defendant as well as his family. Defensor may have merely exercised his assumed rights, but he certainly created quite a nuisance that even had the Senate in a bind.

Beyond Defensor, the opinions expressed by Judge Lorredo can be considered a wake up call for politicians, lawyers and litigants that the Judicial system or the Courts in particular are not tactical instruments for coercion, harassment or revenge.

While the courts may admit cases, it does not always mean that every complainant gets preferential treatment. The opinion of Judge Lorredo mirrors the growing exasperation and annoyance of the Judiciary at being used by others and then being left with the problem, if not the garbage.

The problem of “dumping upon the court” is not an exclusive practice of politicians or members of the Arroyo administration. Many corporate lawyers have also resorted to restraining or tying up opponents, critics, competition or complainants by filing every imaginable lawsuit against them.

In this present administration we have seen far too many whistleblowers and people fighting in righteous indignation ending up in jail, in court and in the poor house because it has become so easy for the rich and powerful to file cases and pile it up in court.

Take the case of “John” who I knew from UP Diliman as a member of the elite Upsilon fraternity. I recently learned about the “Insult and Injury” that happened to him while he was minding his own business.

The “injury” that was caused to John happened when the original owners of Pacific Plans decided to refund his payments for a couple of educational plans he invested in. He got his money back but not what he had paid for. So like the thousands of Filipinos who lost out or got short-changed in the deal, “John” decided to join the battle against the Yuchengcos and Pacific Plans.

As a result of his righteous indignation, “John” received the ultimate insult in the form of multiple lawsuits; from libel to malicious or wrongful suit filed against him by the company.

Just like Jun Lozada, “John” now has to call or text friends to ask for help in raising his bail money, fight off the case, and somehow make it through each day for the last 4 years. Unfortunately, for “John” the elite Upsilonians also have elite lawyers with elite clients, so being in the same fraternity has not been a blessing like he thought it would be back in college.

Today, total strangers and “Barbarians” like me, who never joined a fraternity are the ones trying to give light and some hope to those abandoned by the elite.  

Unfortunately “John’s”, case is similar to the many cases of people who decide to fight back or to expose tax fraud, bribery, corruption or corporate fraud in the Philippines. You don’t have to be in media, government or the limelight in order to become a victim. You can be a plain parent who believed in a company and the family behind it. You can be an ordinary citizen seeking answers and recompense to a just cause. But when your interest conflicts with the business and the politics of the rich, be prepared to lose even more.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno should press on with his reform agenda by reviewing decisions made by fiscals and by judges as well, on controversial cases involving big names and big corporations.

We have seen too many cases being decided upon at the MTC levels almost automatically favoring elite business with elite lawyers but eventually being overturned by the Court of Appeals or by the Supreme Court.

Send someone to jail

Senators who have been grinding and pounding down on the Securities and Exchange Commission along with officials of various pre-need companies can milk this financial disaster for all it’s worth. But if they don’t manage to focus on a few personalities and send them to jail, this failure will come to haunt them.

In particular, Senator Mar Roxas has had his eye on several issues of public concern such as the pre-need plans, the cheap medicines bill, and poverty alleviation as potential. The bad thing about this is that after all is said and done, it is doubtful if Mar Roxas will actually have the single mindedness to send government and private sector executives to jail. History speaks for itself as far as the Senate investigations go.

Senator Roxas may not realize it but the pre-need plans crisis that he is sitting on is the political equivalent of a fully armed and emotionally fueled rocket. It is also the first block in a table full of dominoes that extend to third party liability scams, medical insurance scams such as unrealistic conditions, discrimination and fraudulent exclusions and termination of coverages.

Poverty is an acquired reality. Cheaper medicines, is an issue of lifestyle and choices. But fraud and deceit is personal. People live with the consequence and the hurt. So Mar, what will it be: door #1, door #2 or door # 3?