CONFIDENT OF VINDICATION
[PHOTO - THE POPULAR PRESIDENT. from files of Bullit Marquez]
MANILA, JANUARY 16, 2012 (INQUIRER)
By Cynthia D. Balana - Can a popular President oust a sitting Chief Justice of
the Supreme Court?
An 11-member prosecution team from the House of Representatives is set to
make history on Monday by showing how, as it shifts the battle from the media to
the Senate sitting as an impeachment court.
The prosecutors lineup is a mix of legal "lightweights and heavyweights,"
graduates of the country's premier law schools, and includes two bar
topnotchers, two certified public accountants, two bar reviewers, an economist
and practicing trial lawyers. Most of the members are scions of rich and
influential political clans.
They will be backstopped by 59 private prosecutors, an average of four to 11
private lawyers for each of the eight articles of impeachment. Panel
spokesperson Aurora Rep. Sonny Angara said all 59 private lawyers have
volunteered their services free of charge.
In an interview, some panel members admitted that the campaign to "free" the
Supreme Court of Corona has turned out to be much worse than they imagined.
'Daunting and exciting'
Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., the chief prosecutor, said the trial will be both
"daunting and exciting," as he anticipates locking horns with more seasoned
counterparts from the camp of the Chief Justice and with the "great legal and
political minds in the Senate."
He said he is motivated by the desire to seek justice and fairness from the
highest court of the land.
"This chapter is but a part of our quest to have former President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo, now Pampanga representative, pay for all her crimes to the
people as we join in this tactical effort to unseat an undeserving Chief Justice
who we believe was precisely appointed to protect her," Tupas said.
Corona is accused of betrayal of public trust, graft and corruption, and
culpable violation of the Constitution. He was impeached last month by 188
congressmen who filed the impeachment complaint and delivered the eight articles
of impeachment to the Senate sitting as an impeachment court in a matter of
hours last Dec. 12.
Their assignments
Tupas, the chair of the House committee on justice that initiated the
impeachment complaint against Corona, will argue the article dealing with
Corona's alleged partiality and subservience in cases involving the Arroyo
administration, with Deputy Speaker and Northern Samar Rep. Raul Daza and Bayan
Muna Party-list Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares.
The son of a former Iloilo governor, Tupas, 42, finished political science,
magna cum laude, and law, at the University of the Philippines.
Daza, 76, is a seasoned CPA and trial lawyer and has practiced both here and
in the United States. He finished business administration, cum laude, at the
University of the East and took his law degree, cum laude, at the University of
the Philippines. He placed 11th in the 1957 bar examinations. He served as
senior defense counsel in the impeachment trial of deposed President Joseph
Estrada in 2000.
A human rights lawyer, Colmenares has litigated a long list of cases in
civil, criminal, constitutional and electoral law. He took an economics degree
at San Beda College and completed his law degree at UP in 1996.
Not judicial but political
Colmenares claims not to be threatened by the crack defense team, saying the
House prosecutors' collective experience will help win the case.
But he said this was not a decisive factor as in the end, impeachment is not
a judicial proceeding but a political act of a political body.
The prosecutors' preparation will not entirely focus on convincing the
senators to convict on the basis of jurisprudence or the rules of court but on
what is just and in the interest of the common good and good governance, he
said.
"While we will present evidence so to speak, we will not be bound by the
Rules of Court," Colmenares said.
The article dealing with Corona's alleged failure to disclose his statement
of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) will be argued for the prosecution
by Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr., Pangasinan Rep. Marilyn Primicias-Aggabas
and Tupas.
Barzaga, 62, has a degree in commerce, cum laude, from San Beda College, and
finished law, magna cum laude, from Far Eastern University.
Aggabas finished commerce at University of Santo Tomas and law at San Beda.
She was a trial lawyer in Pangasinan before joining Congress.
Isabela Rep. Giorgidi Aggabao, Akbayan party-list member Arlene Bag-ao and
Cibac party-list member Sherwin Tugna will take care of the article dealing with
Corona's alleged failure to "meet and observe the stringent standards" of a
member of the judiciary.
Aggabao ranked 10th in the 1980 bar examinations after graduating with a law
degree from Ateneo de Manila University in 1980.
At 34, the youngest member of the panel, Tugna was admitted to the bar in
2007. He obtained his law degree from Ateneo de Manila University and a commerce
degree from University of Santo Tomas.
Gutierrez case
Bag-ao and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali will handle the article
dealing with Corona's alleged disregard for the separation of powers by issuing
a status quo ante order against the House of Representatives in the impeachment
of former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez.
Bag-ao finished political science at De La Salle University, and obtained her
law degree from from Ateneo de Manila in 1993.
A lawyer-economist, Umali obtained a degree in economics at Ateneo de Manila
University in 1978, and in law at San Beda College and Manuel L. Quezon
University in 1987.
Barzaga and Aggabao will handle the article pertaining to Corona's alleged
"wanton arbitrariness and partiality in consistently disregarding the principle
of res judicata" in the cases involving the 16 newly created cities, and the
promotion of Dinagat island into a province.
Tugna and Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas will handle the article accusing
Corona of "arrogating unto himself and to a committee he created, the authority
and jurisdiction to improperly investigate a justice of the Supreme Court for
the purpose of exculpating him," in the plagiarism case involving Associate
Justice Mariano del Castillo.
Prosecutor who did not sign
Fariñas finished his law degree at Ateneo de Manila University in 1978 and
placed eighth in the bar examinations. He has the distinction of being the only
prosecutor who did not sign the impeachment complaint.
Colmenares and Daza will handle the article charging Corona with alleged
partiality in granting a temporary restraining order in favor of former
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her husband Jose Miguel Arroyo, and in
allegedly "distorting the Supreme Court decision on the effectivity of the TRO
in view of a clear failure to comply with the conditions of the TRO."
Umali and Aggabao will argue the article charging Corona with graft and
corruption for allegedly failing and refusing to account for the Judiciary
Development Fund and Special Allowance for the Judiciary collections.
Cavite City Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya, the 11th member of the prosecution
panel who will serve as its manager, is a former Navy officer who obtained a
degree in mathematics from the US Naval Academy, and a degree in law from Ateneo
de Manila. With a report from Gil C. Cabacungan
FROM THE PHILSTAR
Corona confident of vindication By Edu Punay (The
Philippine Star) Updated January 16, 2012 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Chief Justice Renato Corona believes he will be
vindicated and cleared of allegations in eight articles of impeachment as he
faces trial before the Senate starting today.
"We have prepared for this," he told The STAR yesterday. "My lawyers handled
the bulk of the work. I believe they will be able to defend me well."
Corona will attend the first day of trial in the Senate impeachment court,
according to retired Supreme Court justice Serafin Cuevas, the lead defense
counsel.
It will be the first time that a chief justice will face an impeachment
trial.
Corona has given his lawyers the documents and explanations necessary to
debunk the charges in all eight articles of impeachment, including his alleged
failure to declare millions of pesos worth of assets. properties.
Corona said he will stand by the truth.
"I own five properties, my house that I inherited from my parents and four
condominiums that I had worked hard for," he said.
It is contrary to the insinuation of the House prosecution panel that he owns
at least 45 properties in Metro Manila.
In the first hearing today, Corona's lawyers are expected to push for a
preliminary hearing to settle the issue of whether the impeachment complaint
filed had complied with the verification required under the law.
In a phone interview yesterday, Cuevas said they would also oppose the bid of
House prosecutors to summon the wife and children of Corona to the hearings.
"Our allegation is that they want to subpoena the family to testify or
produce evidence or documents to prove their claim (that Corona owns
at least 45 condominiums and real estate properties)," he said. "That can't
happen."
Cuevas said the Constitution provides that no person can be compelled to be a
witness against himself or herself.
"Provisions are also clear that no person can be compelled to testify against
a spouse or against parents," he said.
The defense will be spearheaded by 12 lawyers who had volunteered their
services to defend Corona and the judiciary since most of the articles in the
impeachment involve the SC's collegial rulings.
House prosecutors vowed to prove their allegations are "not a black
propaganda" as Corona had branded them.
The 11-member panel led by Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas Jr. will be backed by 59
private lawyers.
Both the defense and prosecution are expected to hold press conferences in a
designated media room at the Senate after the hearing in the afternoon.
After resolving the issue on verification of the complaint, the impeachment
court is expected to proceed to the merits of all eight articles of impeachment.
In his answer filed last Dec. 26, Corona said most of the allegations were
"mere opinions or conjectures, without basis in fact and in law."
Corona said he could not be held accountable for the outcome of cases before
the SC, which acts as a collegial body.
"By mentioning the decisions and actions of the Supreme Court, complainants
demonstrate their lack of understanding of the concept of a collegial body like
the Supreme Court, where each member has a single vote," he said.
Corona belied the charge that he has been partial to former President Gloria
Macapagal- Arroyo, who named him chief justice in May 2010.
"It is not uncommon for justices to have previously worked as professionals
in close association with the President," he said.
Corona cited as example the case of Senior Justice Antonio Carpio, whom
Arroyo named to the SC after being a partner in the law firm that used to be the
retained counsel of her family.
"What we have before us, then, is a complaint borne out of the bias against
CJ Corona and the predisposition to destroy him by associating him with the
unpopular former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and by misinterpreting his
concurrence to certain Supreme Court decisions as protecting former President
Arroyo," he said.
Corona said the issue on his midnight appointment has already been resolved
under the watch of retired Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
He also did not commit culpable violation of the Constitution in the alleged
non-disclosure of his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN), he
added.
Corona said he has been faithfully complying with the required filing of SALN
every year with the Office of the Clerk of Court.
However, a 1992 SC ruling prohibits publication of SALNs of justices because
it "could endanger, diminish, or destroy their independence and objectivity or
expose them to revenge, kidnapping, extortion, blackmail, or other dire fates,"
he added.
Legitimate, professional toil
Corona also denied charges that he accumulated ill-gotten wealth, acquired
high-value assets, and kept bank accounts with huge deposits, not declared in
his SALN.
He had "acquired his assets from legitimate sources of income, mostly from
his professional toils," he added.
Corona belied allegation of lack of integrity, probity and independence by
acting on a mere letter from former justice secretary Estelito
Mendoza, lawyer of business tycoon Lucio Tan on the case of Flight Attendants
and Stewards Association of the Philippines vs Philippine Airlines.
He had already inhibited from that case since 2008, he added.
Corona also sees nothing wrong with the appointment of his wife, Ma. Cristina
to the Board of John Hay Management Corp. (JHMC) during the Arroyo
administration.
His wife was appointed before he joined the SC, he added.
Corona said no law prohibits the wife of a Chief Justice from pursuing her
own career in government.
"This is commonplace," he said.
"Indeed, Article 73 of the Family Code explicitly allows the wife to exercise
any legitimate profession, business, or activity even without the consent of the
husband.
"Her appointment did not in any way influence the voting of CJ Corona when he
eventually joined the Court."
Corona defended before the Senate the SC order last year temporarily
enjoining the House of Representatives from proceeding with the impeachment
proceedings against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez.
What is being assailed is collegial action of the SC, he added.
The SC did not violate the separation of powers because the status quo ante
order last year was included in its power to review actions of coequal branches
of government, he said.
Corona said the sixth article of impeachment had no basis since he did not
create the ethics committee that cleared Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo
of plagiarism charges.
"The creation of the Ethics Committee by the Supreme Court cannot be regarded
as an act of betrayal of public trust," he said.
"The power to promulgate Internal Rules and create the Ethics Committee stems
from the power of the Supreme Court to discipline its own members as provided
for in Section 6 Article VIII of the 1987 Constitution."
Corona said on the seventh article of impeachment, he should not be held
liable for the SC's issuance of a temporary restraining order that would have
allowed Arroyo to leave the country last month to seek treatment for a disease
in her cervical spine while facing poll fraud charges.
"The Supreme Court did not act with undue haste," he said.
"The members were given copies of the petitions of GMA and her husband. The
deliberation on the matter took long because many of the justices presented
their separate views.
"Only then did the justices decide to submit the matter to a vote. The
majority opted to issue a TRO, enjoining the secretary of justice from enforcing
her WLO against the Arroyos."
Corona said he did not betray the public trust and/or committed graft and
corruption when he refused to report on the status of the Judiciary Development
Fund (JDF) and the Special Allowance for the Judiciary, to remit to the Bureau
of Treasury all collections, and to account for funds released and spent for
unfilled positions in the judiciary and from authorized and funded, but not
created courts.
"These allegations in Article VIII are a mere rehash of the allegations
against former Chief Justices Andres Narvasa and Hilario Davide Jr.," he said.
"Secretary Florencio Abad has adamantly sought and continues to seek control
of the budget allocated for the unfilled positions for the legislative
department, the judiciary and the constitutional commissions. This is an attack
on the Supreme Court's fiscal autonomy."
For these reasons, Corona asked the impeachment court to "enter a judgment of
acquittal for all the Articles of Impeachment."
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
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rights reserved
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