Nina REY G. PANALIGAN at BETH CAMIA

Hiniling kahapon ni Solicitor General Jose C. Calida sa Supreme Court (SC) na ipawalang-bisa ang appointment ni Maria Lourdes P. A. Sereno bilang Chief Justice dahil sa kabiguan nitong magsumite ng mga dokumentong hinihiling para sa pinakamataas na posisyon sa hudikatura.

Inaasahang tatalakayin ng SC ang petisyon ni Calida ngayong umaga (Marso 6) sa regular full court session nito kasama si Senior Justice Antonio T. Carpio bilang acting Chief Justice simula nang mag-indefinite leave si Sereno noong Marso 1.

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Sinabi ng sources na sakaling tinalakay at binigyan ng due course, inaasahang oobligahin ng SC si Sereno na magkomento sa petisyon.

Iginiit ni Calida sa kanyang petisyon na imbalido ang appointment ni Sereno sa simula pa lamang dahil hindi niya naabot ang specific qualification ng proven integrity sa kabiguan niyang magsumite ng 10-year statements of assets, liabilities and networth (SALNs).

Nakasaad sa bahagi ng petisyon na: “Under Section 7(3), Article VIII of the 1987 Constitution, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Republic of the Philippines, like any member of the judiciary, must be of proven integrity. Cognizant of this eligibility requirement, the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) in 2009 directed all applicants for the position of Chief Justice to submit ten statements of assets and liabilities filed prior to their application.

“Respondent Maria Lourdes P.A. Sereno did not do so, although she began her government service as a professor at the University of the Philippines College of Law from 1986 to 2006. The Report to the JBC nevertheless mistakenly stated ‘complete requirements’ opposite Sereno’s name.

“This misled the JBC into including her in the shortlist; she was subsequently appointed to the highest position in the Judiciary notwithstanding her failure to prove her integrity.”

Ipinunto ni Calida na ang pagsama kay Sereno sa short list of nominees ng JBC para sa Chief Justice at ang pagtalaga sa kanya Pangulong Benigno Aquino III noong 2012 “do not extinguish the fact that she failed to comply with the SALN requirement under the Constitution and relevant laws.”

Nais ni Calida na matanggal na si Sereno dahil hindi umano ito naging tapat noong nag-apply sa posisyon bilang CJ.

QUO WARRANTO

AT IMPEACHMENT

Nilinaw din niya ang pagkakaiba ng kanyang petition for quo warranto case at ng impeachment proceedings laban kay Sereno ng House of Representatives.

“The writ of quo warranto is being sought to question the validity of her appointment; in turn, the impeachment complaint accuses her of committing culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust while in office.

“Stated differently, the petitioner is seeking her ouster from her office because she did not prove her integrity as an applicant for the position. The complainant in the impeachment proceedings wants her removed as the sitting Chief Justice for impeachable offenses,” paliwanag ng SolGen.

Una rito, iginiit ng isa sa mga tagapagsalita ni Sereno na si Atty. Josa Deinla na tanging impeachment complaint lamang ang makakatanggal sa punong mahistrado sa kanyang puwesto.

‘WALANG PILITAN

Nilinaw na naman SC acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio na hindi pinilit ng mga mahistrado si Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno na mag-leave sa trabaho.