EDITORIAL - Swift justice

It took a bit of time, but Ilocos Sur Rep. Ronald Singson has finally done the right thing and resigned from the 15th Congress. Singson tendered his resignation after a Hong Kong court sentenced him last week to 18 months in prison for drug trafficking. By the time he finishes serving his sentence, his term as a congressman will be almost over and the campaign for seats in the House of Representatives will be heating up.

The Commission on Elections has rules governing similar situations and there should be no problem finding someone to represent Singson’s constituents in the first district of Ilocos Sur.

Singson might have resigned to spare himself from acrimonious proceedings in the House to expel him. The House leadership had also suspended payment of his salary and other emoluments. But his quick resignation also sets an example for other lawmakers in similar circumstances.

The quick action is of course also due to the efficiency of the Hong Kong justice system, which handed down a final judgment on his case within just six months following his arrest at Chek Lap Kok international airport in July last year. The Hong Kong Wan Chai District Court found Singson guilty of bringing into the Chinese administrative region 6.67 grams of cocaine as well as Valium. He said the drugs were for his own use as he transited through Hong Kong from Manila on his way to Macau to attend a poker tournament. How do drug abusers and poker aficionados get elected to the Philippine Congress?

If a lawmaker is tried for drug trafficking in the Philippines, the case could drag on for a decade before a final decision is handed down by the courts. And even when a decision has been declared final and executory by the Supreme Court, the tribunal has now made endless litigation possible with its seemingly perpetual flip-flopping on a case involving the cityhood law. Singson’s case shows what happens when the justice system works. Unfortunately for the Philippines, it’s someone else’s justice system.