Impeachment Trial, A Hard Look, An Analytic View by Avisado

8/19/2019 Impeachment Trial, A Hard Look, An Analytic View by Avisado

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Impeachment Trial of the Supreme Court Chief Justice: Taking A

Hard Look, An Analytic Vie

!y Atty" Adoracion #$ory% Cru& A'isado

Greetings_____

At the outset, I express my congratulations to the EHEM Anti-

Corruption Movement for reaching a decade a dou!le digit, "# years

this year$ I am very happy that this movement continues to gro%

stronger$ I pray that through EHEM %e continue to influence

government and the &ilipino society so %e can move closer and closer

to%ards its goal of eradicating corruption$ 'et me also say that the

sooner %e find the need for EHEM to phase out as a movement to

fight corruption, the !etter for all of us !ecause that means that our

country is finally corruption free$ It is not an easy or smooth (ourney$

)he resistance for change for good governance to rid our country of

corruption to practice responsi!ility, accounta!ility and transparency

in all government operations is still an uphill !attle$ *espite the

existence of our Constitution for the past + years and la%s that

should eradicate corruption, that expressed policy seems to !e still too

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distant to realie especially if %e loo. at %hat is truly happening to a

very important !ranch of our government, the /udiciary$

Having said that, let me say that for us %ho for decades have

!een advocating for the transformation of the (ustice system, %hat is

happening no% is a !lessing$ )he expos0s and revelation of %hat has

long !een existing in our country that there is an 1Intert%ining

Culture of 2atriarchy, Corruption and Impunity3 is long overdue$ )he

existence of the intert%ining culture, of patriarchy, corruption and

impunity hampers the attainment of genuine democracy, peace and

sustaina!le human development in our country$

)he invitation for me today states that I should spea. a!out the

on going trial of the impeached Chief /ustice of the 4upreme Court,

5enato C$ Corona$ I am to provide an analytic vie% on the

political6legal, academic6moral aspects of the trial$ I am also as.ed to

discuss the trial7s repercussion in our legal system and the /udiciary$

&inally, I %ill discuss its !earing on the current state of corruption in

our country$

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)he trial of the IC/ 8Impeached Chief /ustice9 is historic$ It is a

significant and ma(or !rea.through for our country$ )he

administration of (ustice in our country has !een in very !ad shape for

decades$ Ho%ever, it has %orsened during the past administration,

under former 2resident Gloria Macapagal Arroyo$

'et me first give you a !rief situationer$ &or those of us

monitoring cases, %e have seen ho% decisions of the highest court of

the land flip-flopped to favour the rich and the %ell connected$ Many

times %e have seen the po%erful and mighty get off scot free from

clear cut cases of rape or sexual harassment and even murder$ Ho%

many times have %e seen the poor and po%erless (ailed so easily

%ithout proper representation in court: Ho% many times have %e

seen cases %here %omen are forced to go !ac. into the very homes

that are the venues %here they are experiencing violence:

;hile %e have very good la%s in this country, the same are not

properly applied, enforced, implemented, o!served and complied


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%ith$

=sing the frame%or. !y Margaret 4chuller let us loo. into the

'egal Components$

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Let us look at the Components of the Legal System using the framework by Margaret Schuler


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Discussion on Culture of Patriarchy, Corruption and Impunity

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Discussion on State of Justice System and Judiciary


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In light of all these prevailing cultures in our society, %hat can

%e do to counter it: ;here can %e in(ect reform and change: Bne

strategy that the )ransformative /ustice Institute promotes is the

process of )ruth )elling$ )he point is that %e need to stop the culture

of lying, culture of silence and culture of cover up$ ;e need to !ring

to light the !ad things happening in government$ ;e don7t do

ourselves any favor !y .eeping silent in the hope that %e %ill not !e

targeted !ecause %e spea. out$ 'et us cele!rate those %ho are %histle

!lo%ers li.e Haidee Mendoa$ 'et us support those %ho %ant to

spea. out$ 'et us hold in higher regard those %ho %ould !rea. the

1code of silence3 or 1omerta3$ 'et us see that it is a higher sense of

honor that %ould have one !rea. a code of silence than one %ho

%ould .eep silent even in the face of %rong doing and crime$


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)he Constitution, in its opening provision already states that our

ideals involve living in truth$

)he Constitution continues this in 4ection +@ of Article II in the

declaration of principles and state policies %hich states that 1)he

4tate shall maintain honesty and integrity in the pu!lic service and

ta.e positive and effective measures against graft and corruption$3

)he Constitution devotes one %hole Article, specifically Article

DI for Accounta!ility of 2u!lic Bfficers$ )he very first section states

that 12u!lic office is a pu!lic trust$3 ;e expect those %ho are in

pu!lic service to have the highest integrity$ )his includes honesty in

all dealings$

o% let us turn to the matter at hand, the trial of the Impeached

Chief /ustice$ 'et me summarie to you the Articles of Impeachment

against him$

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A5)IC'E I

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust through partiality and su!servience to 2GMA

!ased on his trac. record in cases involving the Arroyo administration

from his appointment as Associate /ustice to his midnight

appointment as Chief /ustice$

A5)IC'E II

Culpa!le iolation of the Constitution and Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust

for failure to disclose to the 2u!lic his 4A' as reuired under the

Constitution$

A5)IC'E III

Culpa!le iolation of the Constitution and Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust !y

failing to meet and o!serve the stringent standards of the Constitution

regarding competence, integrity, pro!ity and independence in regard

to the 4upreme Court Action on the letters filed !y Counsel causing

flip-flopping decisions on &inal and Executory Cases 8&A4A2 Case9

In creating excessive entanglement %ith Mrs$ Arroyo through the

appointment of his %ife to office and in discussing pending cases

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%ith litigants$

A5)IC'E I

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust and6or Culpa!le iolation of the Constitution

in !latantly disregarding the principle of 4eparation of 2o%ers !y

issuing a 14tatus uo Ante3 Brder against the House of

5epresentatives regarding the impeachment of &ormer Bm!udsman

Merceditas Gutierre$

A5)IC'E

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust through %anton ar!itrariness and patiality in

disregarding the principle of res (udicata in the cases involving the "?

ne%ly created cities and promotion of *inagat Island into a 2rovince$

A5)IC'E I

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust !y Arrogating to himself and a committee he

created the authority and (urisdiction over investigation of a (ustice of

the 4upreme Court for the purpose of exculpating him$

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A5)IC'E II

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust through the granting of a )5B for Gloria

Macapagal Arroyo and her hus!and Mi.e Arroyo to give them an

opportunity to escape prosecution and in distorting the 4upreme Court

*ecision !y failure to comply %ith the Conditions of the )5B$

A5)IC'E III

Fetrayal of 2u!lic )rust and Graft and Corruption in the failure and

refusal to account for the /udiciary *evelopment &und and the

4pecial Allo%ance for /udiciary Collections$

All of these articles of impeachment point to%ard the same

thingJ that is, the Chief /ustice is not morally fit to hold the high

office that he currently commands$ )hat there is alleged !etrayal of

pu!lic trust and culpa!le violation of the Constitution$

)he Constitutional !asis for Impeachment is rooted in Article DI

of the Constitution %hich statesJ 14ection +$ )he 2resident, the ice-

2resident, the Mem!ers of the 4upreme Court, the Mem!ers of the

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Constitutional Commissions, and the Bm!udsman may !e removed

from office, on impeachment for and conviction of, culpa!le violation

of the Constitution, treason, !ri!ery, graft and corruption, other high

crimes, or !etrayal of pu!lic trust$ All other pu!lic officers and

employees may !e removed from office as provided !y la%, !ut not

!y impeachment$3

)he House of 5epresentatives, !y an over%helming vote of "

Congresspersons for%arded their Articles of Impeachment on the

!asis of paragraph > of 4ection 9 In case the verified complaint or resolution of impeachment

is filed !y at least one-third of all the Mem!ers of the House, the

same shall constitute the Articles of Impeachment, and trial !y

the 4enate shall forth%ith proceed$

Fased on %hat %e have previously discussed, the Constitution is

very clear regarding its expectations of those %ho hold pu!lic office$

;e should all agree that in the case of such magnitude as that

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uestioning the moral fitness of the Chief /ustice of the land, the

standard !y %hich %e hold him to, must !efit his position$

4o %hat is moral fitness: )he case of 5a!e vs$ &lores, %here a

Court Interpreter %as dismissed for among others, failing to disclose

her interest in a mar.et place stall, states thusJ 1;e have repeatedly

held that although every office in the government service is a pu!lic

trust, no position exacts a greater demand for moral righteousness and

uprightness from an individual than in the (udiciary$ 2ersonnel in the

(udiciary should conduct themselves in such a manner as to !e !eyond

reproach and suspicion, and free from any appearance of impropriety

in their personal !ehavior, not only in the discharge of their official

duties !ut also in their everyday life$ )hey are strictly mandated to

maintain good moral character at all times and to o!serve

irreproacha!le !ehavior so as not to outrage pu!lic decency$3

It further states, uoting from the case of /2*IB vs$ Calaguas

that 1)he Court must reiterate that a pu!lic office is a pu!lic trust$ A

pu!lic servant is expected to exhi!it, at all times, the highest degree of

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honesty and integrity and should !e made accounta!le to all those

%hom he serves$3

)he exact same standard !y %hich the Court holds its employees

must !e the exact same standard, if not stricter and higher, should !e

applied to those %ho lead$ )he propriety or impropriety of their

actions must !e held to even a higher standard$ )hus the penalty for

%rong doing must !e higher$ Fut this is really one of the prevailing

pro!lems in the /udiciary$ )here is no uniformity of penalties and

sanctions$ )he %ell connected often times go scot free$ )he lo%ly

employee is easily punished contrary to the principle on social (ustice$

)his system %ithin the (udiciary is perpetuated !y the fraternity ties,

the bata bata and padrino systems$ It %ill !e thus, to our eternal

shame, if %e do not ta.e advantage and seie this moment to correct

and reform this prevailing culture even %ithin the (udiciary$

)o uote a line often attri!uted to the 4piderman series, 1;ith

great po%er comes great responsi!ility3$ )he Fi!le tells us something

very similar in 'u.e "+J> %hich states 1to %hom much is given,

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much is expected$3 In the case of the Chief /ustice, the great po%er

that he %ields must come %ith a higher expectation of accounta!ility$

'et me connect this to %hat %e have previously discussed in our

proposed frame%or.$ 2art of %hat %e are pushing for is truth telling$

)herefore, %e encourage the 4enate, as an impeachment court to truly

strive for attainment of truth$ )echnicalities and legal principles can

!e used to divert attention from the truth and !loc. it from coming

out$ Ho%ever, it is %ithin the courtsK po%er to, %ithin !ounds of the

rule of la% and due process, elicit the truth regarding the allegations

against the Chief /ustice$ )herefore regardless of their political

alliances, they should all desire for truth$

'et me !e very clear that the Chief /ustice is of course entitled

to defend himself$ And %e eagerly a%ait his defense on the merits of

the allegations that have !een made against him and some facts

already esta!lished Ho%ever, I have to say that %ith %hat %e have

seen so far, it is a high and steep clim! for him to explain %hat

already appears to !e a pattern of omission, undervaluation and non-

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disclosure in relation to his 4tatement of Assets, 'ia!ilities and et

;orth 84A'9$

After " days of trial of the Impeached Chief /ustice, *avid '$

Falangue, Chair of the Coalition Against Corruption and a former

Chair and Managing partner of 4G and Company, in his column

Fusiness Matters in the 2hilippine *aily Inuirer last &e!ruary ",

+#"+ entitled 1Ma.ing A 4tand for )ruth and Accounta!ility$3 %roteJ

1)he ongoing impeachment trial is a litmus test of the countryKs

resolve in the fight against corruption$ )he acuittal of the

Chief /ustice %ill send a distur!ing message to the %orld that %e

are a hopeless case$ )his %ill create an impression that

corruption is so em!edded here such that the corrupt cannot !e

held accounta!le, %hich %ill ma.e us unattractive to foreign

investments$ ;e need these investments to generate (o!

opportunities for our people and pull our country out of poverty3

8end of uote9

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)he columnist is encouraging the !ig !usiness groups to express

their thoughts and !rea. their silence$

As a result of the on-going trial of the impeached chief (ustice

%e can recommend several points of action to help in pushing to

mature our democracy and exact real accounta!ility and transparency,

to %itJ

"$ Improve the rules and procedures of the impeachment process$

Bne area of improvement is in including a process of 2re-)rial$

)his %ill cut the time that is spent on discussing preliminary

issues including %ho are the %itnesses to !e called the mar.ing

of documents %hat facts can !e stipulated upon and %hat needs

to !e proven in court among others$

+$ )echnicality must give %ay to the uest for truth and (ustice$


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or form influence the process of trial and most importantly must

not !loc. the presentation of documents reuired !y the

Impeachment Court$ )his %ill !e a fair call since preventive

suspension is imposed even upon non-impeacha!le elected

officials %hom the people actually vote into office$

>$ )he la% on &oreign Currency *eposits must !e amended$ It

must not continue to create a haven for those %ho %ould raid

the nations coffers$

$ ;e must push for the immediate passage of &BI Fills that

reuires disclosure of all government records including 4A'Ks$

;hat %e are going through right no% is a painful !ut needed

process$ ;hatever the result of the trial is, %e have sho%n that %e, as

a democracy are mature enough to undergo this process$ As %e

eagerly a%ait the end of this ho%ever, the uestion must !e as.edJ

;hat is next: Is this 1cleansing3 enough:

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*efinitely, the ans%er is BL A single step is !ut a single step$

;e cannot truly say that %e have accomplished anything unless it

!rings %ith it true and lasting change in our culture$

'et me start %ith addressing our very o%n teachers, graduates

and future graduates of the Ateneo de *avao$ ou are the young ones

%ho %ill run the system$ our attitudes and !ehaviour %ill dictate the

state of the legal system in the future$ ;hether you go into the

private sector or enter the realm of pu!lic service, your actions and

decisions %ill dictate ho% society %ill !e run$

I invite you to do your o%n reflection$ ;hat is your role, if any,

in the corruption that is prevalent in our country: ;hat is your role in

approaching the poor and further unempo%ering the people: Are you

part of those %ho reinforce the culture of patriarchy, corruption and

impunity: Br %ould you li.e to !e part of those %ho %ill counter that

culture and push for change for a !etter country and a !etter &ilipino

nation:

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Bur tas., in order to truly !ring a!out change is to change this

prevailing culture$ Here is a graph on ho% %e can counter the

prevailing culture !y using truth telling$

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Discuss CounterCulture !raph

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Micah ?J tells usJ 1)his is %hat the 'ord expects of you, to act

(ustly, to love mercy, and to %al. hum!ly %ith your God$3 ;e are

called to !e (ust$ ;e cannot claim to live godly lives unless %e o!ey

%hat God tells us$ It does not matter if %e go to church everyday if

after %e leave, %e continue to %al. on the do%ntrodden and flout our

disregard for la% and (ustice$

Amos J+> states 1'et (ustice flo% li.e a river, righteousness

li.e a never failing stream$3 If %e truly %ant to !e the nation that %e

desire to !e then the movement to%ards attaining true (ustice must

never !e hindered$ As such, %e must ta.e full use of this opportunity

that %e have no% !efore us to push for cleansing our /udiciary$ 'et

us live up to the ideals of our Constitution$ 'et us !e !ound !y the

tenets of our faith in God$

'et me end %ith + uotes first from our Constitution, then from

the Fi!le$ 5emem!er that the ultimate po%er in the governance

!elong to us , the &ilipino citiens$ )hat is %hy %e have to participate

and express %hat %e %ant$ 'et us refresh our minds a!out %hat %e

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said in the 2ream!le of our "@ Constitution 1;e, the sovereign

&ilipino people, imploring the aid of Almighty God, in order to !uild

a (ust and humane society and esta!lish a Government that shall

em!ody our ideals and aspirations, promote the common good,

conserve and develop our patrimony, and secure to ourselves and our

posterity the !lessings of independence and democracy under the rule

of la% and a regime of truth, (ustice, freedom, love, euality, and

peace, do ordain and promulgate this Constitution$3

&inally, let us hear once more + Chronicles @J"> from the Bld

)estament$ )his %as %ritten for the nation of Israel %ho had strayed

from their covenant %ith God and %orshipped other gods$ )hey

endured painful punishment as a result$ Fut God, !eing the loving

God that He is, promised thisJ 1If my people, %ho are called !y my

name, %ill hum!le themselves and pray and see. my face and turn

from their %ic.ed %ays, then I %ill hear from heaven, and I %ill

forgive their sin and %ill heal their land$3

I !elieve the same is called of us today$ 'et us ta.e this

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opportunity to turn from the %ic.edness that %e have allo%ed to grip

our nation$ 'et us free ourselves from the !ondage of %ic.ed %ays,

li.e love for material things and a!use of po%er and authority and

our Heavenly &ather %ill hear our cry and heal our land$

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Impeachment Trial, A Hard Look, An Analytic View by Avisado