CORONA'S RESPONSE TO AQUINO'S SPEECH
[PHOTO
- President Benigno Aquino 3rd answers a question posed by a student
during the "Edsa Noon, Atin Ngayon: Tagumpay ng Bayan" open forum at La
Consolacion College Manila on Thursday. MALACAÑANG
PHOTO]
MANILA, FEBRUARY 18, 2012 (MANILA TIMES) Written by JAIME R. PILAPIL
REPORTER - PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino 3rd on Thursday and for the nth time
lambasted Chief Justice Renato Corona in public and cited a discrepancy between
the top magistrate's peso bank accounts totaling P31.5 million and his 2010
statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) showing only a total of
P3.5 million in cash.
President Aquino said that the big difference between the declared cash in
the statement and the cash in the bank was enough reason for Corona to vacate
his post immediately.
The Chief Justice is facing trial before the Senate sitting as an impeachment
court for alleged offenses meriting removal from the top post in the High
Tribunal.
During an open forum at exclusive La Consolacion College Manila, Mr. Aquino
was asked by a student what his reaction would be once Corona was found innocent
by senator-judges.
"It will be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to pursue the reform
agenda of my administration," he said.
The President further cited a Supreme Court ruling wherein a mere court
interpreter, a certain Delsa Flores of Mindanao, was removed from government
service after she failed to list in her wealth statement an income derived from
a market stall that she owned.
"Maliwanag pa sa sikat ng araw, di tugma ang SALN sa mga pag-aari mo [It is
clear as day, what you own does not tally with your SALN]," he said in his
"Pulong Bayan" caravan at La Consolacion College that kicked off the 10-day
celebration of the so-called Edsa revolt in 1986.
The revolt, actually a four-day civilian-backed military uprising, catapulted
Corazon Cojuangco Aquino, the mother of the incumbent leader, to the presidency,
succeeding strongman Ferdinand Marcos.
"What should be the judgment (against Corona)? Is there still a question if
his offenses are impeachable?" Mr. Aquino asked his audience of hundreds of
students from various colleges and universities, apparently referring to the
2010 wealth statement of the Chief Justice.
On Day 19 of Corona's trial before the Senate impeachment court on Thursday,
bank officials from Philippine Savings Bank (PSBank) told senator-judges that
the top magistrate had a total of P31.5 million in at least five of his peso
accounts.
"For example, in his 2010 SALN, he declared P3.5 million in cash. His
three bank accounts showed [that] he has a secret stash of P31.5 million. Ang
P3.5 million pesos ay hindi kaparehas ng P31.5 million . . . Hindi scratch paper
ang SALN. It is a signed and sworn affidavit [P3.5 million is not the same as
P31.5 million . . . The SALN is not a scratch paper]," the President said.
Mr. Aquino also balked at the promise of the Chief Justice to disclose "in
due time" his dollar accounts that are the subject of inquiry before the Senate
impeachment court.
"When is this due time? Perhaps he is overdue . . . If you are a Chief
Justice, are you exempted from obeying the law? Are you overdue?," he told his
audience.
The President urged Corona to "stop fooling the people" in trying to justify
allegedly untruthful declarations in his wealth statement.
Also during the forum, he denied that he was turning into a dictator.
"Before I was elected, they said [that] I was a spoiled brat and immature. In
2010, they called me weak. In 2011, they called me a dictator. Now in 2012, they
are calling me a weakling dictator," Mr. Aquino said.
He called on the youth to be involved in the ongoing Senate impeachment trial
of Corona.
And it seemed that the President would have enough time to implore
the youth to be vigilant as he was scheduled to go to 25 more campuses
nationwide to hold forums similar to the one held at La Consolacion College.
The campus tour was being organized by Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. of the
Presidential Communications Operations Office.
It is dubbed as "Pilipinas Natin," but some pundits call it as Coloma's
support for Vice President Jejomar Binay, whom he backed in the 2010 elections
in his capacity as a key leader of the so-called Samar group, a faction vying
for Mr. Aquino's attention.
This faction's rival, the so-called Balay group, is headed by defeated
candidate for vice president and now Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas
2nd.
FROM THE INQUIRER
Corona's response to Aquino's speech in La Consolacion
INQUIRER.net 5:57 pm | Friday, February 17th, 2012
MANILA, Philippines – INQUIRER.net is posting the full text of Chief
Justice Renato Corona's statement in response to President Benigno Aquino III's
speech Thursday at the La Consolacion College in Manila where he raised anew
doubts over the credibility of Corona as head of the Supreme Court and strongly
urged him to step down from his post.
Corona, for his part, countered with a challenge to Aquino to disclose his
own statement of assets, liabilities and networth, bank and psychological
records.
Corona, who was impeached at the House of Representatives in December, is on
trial for, among others, constitutional violations, betrayal of public trust and
graft and corruption.
Below is Corona's statement in Filipino:
Tugon ng Punong Mahistrado sa Talumpati ng Pangulo sa La Consolacion College
tungkol sa Impeachment Proceedings (ika-17 ng Pebrero, 2012)
Ako po ay nananawagan sa ating pangulo na huwag pakialaman, pangunahan at
impluwensiyahan ang Senate Impeachment Court. Mayroon pong proseso ang
impeachment proceedings, at iyan po ay nakasaad sa ating Saligang Batas at sa
mga alituntunin at kalakaran sa Senado. Hindi po ba't kayo ang pumili ng hakbang
na ito at nagdulog nito sa Senado?
Huwag po natin ilayo ang usapin sa proseso ng Impeachment Court at idaan sa
media ang paghusga sa akin. Pabayaan po nating umusad ang kaso nang ayon sa
batas at sa proseso nito. Gaya po ng una ninyong nasabi, higit na makabubuti
kung kayo po ay "magmasid at manahimik muna."
Doon po sa mga nabanggit ninyong "tila ba sadya tayong hinihilo o inililigaw
para mawalan ng interes," wala po tayong dapat sisihin diyan kung hindi ang
inyong mga taga-usig na siyang naglabas ng huwad na listahan ng aking mga
ari-arian, naglathala ng aking sahod upang ipakita na wala akong kakayahang
bumili, nguni't hindi naman isinama ang pangkalahatang sitwasyon, at nitong
huli, nagharap ng mga palsipikadong dokumento ng bangko.
Sino po ba ang talagang nanlilinlang ng taong bayan?
Bilang pangulo ng bayan, hindi po ninyo kailangang "liwanagin ang dapat
liwanagin, at ituwid ang isyung pilit dinidiskaril ng ilan." Tungkulin po iyan
ng Senate Impeachment Court.
Ang tungkulin po ninyo ay hanapan ng lunas ang lumalalang kahirapan at
pagkagutom ng marami nating mamamayan, walang humpay na pagtaas ng presyo ng
gasolina at ng ibang pangunahing bilihin, patuloy na demolisyon ng tirahan ng
mga maralita, at mabagal na tugon sa mga nasalanta ng kalamidad dala ng
kapabayaan sa kalikasan.
Itong mga ito po ang dapat ninyong pagtuunan ng pansin.
Bakit po ninyo tinuturuan ang kabataan na maghusga na hindi alam ang buong
katotohanan, na iisang panig pa lang ang nadidinig? Ganito po bang "hustisya" at
"fair play" ang tinuturo ninyo sa kabataan?
Bigyan ninyo po ako ng pagkakataon na magbigay ng aking panig, magharap ng
aking ebidensiya, sagutin ang inyong mga walang basehang paratang, at ilahad ang
katotohanan. Ito po ang tunay na katarungan at ang naaayon sa ating Saligang
Batas.
Kung kayo po ay nababagalan na sa pag-usad ng kasong isinampa ninyo laban sa
akin, ang solusyon ay nasa kamay ng inyong mga taga-usig.
Ako po ay naglabas na ng aking SALN. Hindi ko po ito itinatago. Ang hindi po
paglathala nito ay ayon sa nabuong patakaran ng Korte Suprema dalawang dekada na
ang nakalipas, hindi pa po ako mahistrado.
Ang SALN ko po ay aking ipaliliwanag pagdating ng aking oras o pagkakataon,
ayon sa proseso ng impeachment proceedings.
Marahil, higit na makabubuti kung ilabas na rin ninyo, Ginoong Pangulo, ang
inyong SALN, at ipaliwanag ito sa taong-bayan. Siguro, isama ninyo na rin ang
inyong bank accounts at psychological records na matagal ng isyu.
Mayroon po tayong obligasyon na ipakita sa taong-bayan na maayos ang ating
pagiisip.
Hinggil po doon sa nabanggit ninyong kaso na Rabe v. Flores, na kung saan ang
isang court interpreter ay natanggal sa serbisyo, dapat po sigurong maipaliwanag
sa inyong mabuti ng inyong mga magagaling na abogado na si Bb. Flores ay
natanggal sa serbisyo hindi lamang dahil sa hindi niya dineklara sa kanyang SALN
ang kanyang paupahan.
Si Bb. Flores po ay natanggal dahil sa pangunahing dahilan na tumanggap po
siya ng "double compensation" o sahod ng dalawang beses, isa galing sa bayan ng
Panabo, Davao, at yung isa mula sa korte.
Sang-ayon po ako sa inyo na dapat hindi na payagang "magpatuloy ang sistema
kung saan may nanlalamang at nilalamanagan."
Nasa mga 20 po lamang ang aking mga tagapagtanggol na nagseserbisyo ng libre,
laban sa 188 congressmen at humigit kumulang na 60 private prosecutors, lahat
sumasahod sa kaban ng bayan. Ito po ba ay tama?
Idagdag pa po natin diyan ang BIR at LTO Commissioners, LRA Administrator,
Registers of Deeds, BID Commissioner, at marami pang ibang opisyal at kawani ng
pamahalaan na inuutusan upang hanapan ako at ang aking buong pamilya ng mga
kamalian.
Ginagamit na po ninyo ang buong puwersa ng gobyerno upang ako at ang aking
buong pamilya ay apihin at pagmalupitan.
Ito po ba ang patas na laban? At matuwid na daan?
Nananawagan din po ako sa taong-bayan.
Kontrolado po ng ating pangulo ang buong Executive Department.
Kontrolado rin po niya ang House of Representatives.
Huwag po nating payagan na mahawakan pa niya ang Senado.
Huwag po tayong pumayag na posasan niya ang Korte Suprema at buong
hudikatura.
Ito po ay para sa ating demokrasya. Ito po ay para sa ating lahat.
FROM THE TRIBUNE
Noy asks: 'Should we let a few to decide' on Corona?
By Fernan J. Angeles 02/17/2012
President Aquino appears to be laying the groundwork for a massive
mobilization to pressure Chief Justice Renato Corona to step down as head of the
Supreme Court and in the process disregard the Senate court proceedings based on
his speech commemorating the 26th anniversary of the 1986 People Power
Revolution.
Aquino claimed Corona continues to trick the people with his "blatant lies"
while asking his listeners at the La Consolacion College in Manila if they would
allow "a few to decide for the rest of the nation." It was not definite who the
handful Aquino is referring to but the Senate court, composed of Senator judges,
is currently trying Corona based on eight articles of impeachment that 188
members of the House of Representatives voted to immediately transmit to the
Senate.
Interestingly, Aquino hinted at the call for a new mob assembly in a school
where his mother, the late President Corazon Aquino, first made an appeal of
People Power Revolution 26 years ago.
Aquino called Corona a liar, saying that some groups are out to deceive and
mislead the public about the ongoing Corona impeachment trial, even as he
assailed "a daily newspaper" as among them.
"Make clear what is needed to be clarified and straighten the issues that are
being derailed by a few to allow the common people to have a clear understanding
and to participate in the discussion of the issues," Aquino said.
He continues to allege that Corona is using his position to protect former
President Gloria Arroyo while citing the Supreme Court's decision to issue a
temporary restraining order (TRO) on a travel ban imposed against her that he is
blaming Corona solely responsible for it.
"Let us remember, it was the Chief Justice himself who insisted that Mrs.
Arroyo can leave the country. The electoral sabotage case filed against her,
which happened in 2007 (was the reason Arroyo was prevented from leaving),"
Aquino said.
Aquino asserted that Corona lied in his statement of assets, liabilities and
net worth (SALn), which is one of the impeachment charges against him, something
which is part of the issues in the impeachment trial and which the Senator
judges had not ruled on yet.
Aquino likewise cited a 1997 case wherein court interpreter Delsa Flores from
Davao was fired for failing to declare in her SALn a market stall she owned. He
said the same strict standards should be used in the case of Corona .
He also dared the Chief Justice again to disclose his true wealth.
The President said Corona was only appointed Chief Justice to cover up the
alleged wrongdoings of the Arroyo administration.
Aquino also urged the public to rally behind his campaign to oust the
nation's top judge, warning the fight against widespread corruption will hinge
on this.
Invoking the famous "people power" revolution that installed his late mother
to the presidency in 1986, Aquino said ordinary Filipinos had the power to
ensure Corona was removed from office.
"We should not allow ourselves to become victims of injustice. We must take a
stand now," Aquino told a town-hall-style meeting with students at a Catholic
college in Manila.
He did not say specifically how the masses could take a stand.
But he recalled how supporters of his late mother, Corazon Aquino, forced
then dictator Ferdinand Marcos into exile by protesting peacefully, waging a
"civil disobedience campaign" and boycotting firms linked to the strongman.
Aquino said he trusted the impeachment process, but he wants the public to
understand that Corona and his backers were using a wide range of tactics in an
effort to derail the case.
Aquino said that if the Senate acquitted Corona, it would virtually destroy
his efforts to rid the country of corruption.
"Extremely difficult, if not impossible," he replied to a question from a law
student about such a prospect.
"It (Corona acquittal) will admittedly be difficult for me to implement the
reform agenda but it remains possible", Aquino said when asked by a student who
was picked to hurl one of the questions from the academic sector.
Aquino also criticized anew Chief Justice Renato Corona for the mismatch
between Corona's SALn and the assets discovered to be under the chief
magistrate's name.
"Mr. Corona, it seems clearer than the sunshine that the recent discoveries
on your properties and finances are far from what you declared in the SALn. Your
P 3.5 million SALn declaration is far from P 31.5 million," Aquino said.
Moreover, Aquino assailed what he said were efforts of Corona's camp to
muddle the issues in the impeachment process, even as he claimed that his
confidence in the impeachment process remains and he will not allow some
personalities to divert the issue.
"I chose to keep mum and just observe on this issue because I still believe
in the integrity of the impeachment process. There have been many issues that
are intentionally brought up before the media either to confuse the people or
compel us to lose interest over it," he said.
He likewise made a public appeal, which appears to be the government's
counter call on Corona's appeal for vigilance in ensuring that democracy remains
in effect.
In his speech, Aquino said the main issue is if Corona is still worth the
trust of the people and that could be answered with the pieces of evidence
presented so far in the trial, such as the latter's SALn. He said Corona's
filing of the SALn is not enough as it has to be scrutinized.
Aquino noted the discrepancy in the amount Corona declared in his SALn and
the money in his PSBank and BPI.
"In 2010, he declared to have P3.5 million cash, but testimonies from the
PSBank President and the BPI branch manager says otherwise, and to think what
they divulged are just three Corona accounts. He didn't declare P31.5 million,"
Aquino was quoted as saying.
Citing the case of a certain Elsa Flores, a court interpreter from the Davao
Regional Trial Court, who was sacked in 1997 for violation of the Republic Act
6713 or Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees
for her failure to declare her income from a market stall that she owned, Aquino
further stressed that Corona isn't in anyway exempted from the ruling.
He added that if Corona has nothing to hide, he should personally take the
initiative to open his dollar accounts. Fernan J. Angeles
and AFP
Chief News Editor: Sol
Jose Vanzi
© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE
NEWS ONLINE
All rights reserved
PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS
ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet
This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.
To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/
(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/phno/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
phno-digest@yahoogroups.com
phno-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
