If this was a lawyer show, if this was happening in another country… I’d probably say it’s exciting. I’d tune in and be riveted. Eat chips and just relax.
A couple of weeks ago, I was excited. Today, I just feel grim.
The irony: The Corona side now chooses to wear the color red. Is it because black proved unlucky? Are they going with red for the Chinese or for Marcos? Picture from the ManilaTimes.net.
Normally, I would think its cool how various sides would try to outwit each other, pull stunts and just battle it out. That is – if it was an episode of The Good Wife, The Practice, Boston Legal and even Ally McBeal.
However, it’s no longer cool if the defense side is composed of the country’s big time lawyers, defending the impeached Supreme Court judge, who was appointed through a midnight appointment by an ex president that is also accused of election fraud (among many other things), who have all these properties and money that doesn’t match his official records, who refuse to open his multiple dollar accounts to the public and who just refuses to let go of his position – even at the expense of the country’s reputation and constitution stability.
I agree with the rule of law argument and I agree with the concept of check and balances. While it is important to look into these things, it is also important to look at why we are here at this point – the current president won the election on a platform of anti corruption. This means that by some miracle, the people still have some hope for some semblance of a government – that’s well, less corrupt, despite our history and despite the past decade.
I think it’s great that the people are not so demoralized after years and years of being treated like a doormat.
This means that the people still believe and demand that they deserve better.
On an ethics paper, I once asked this: If majority of the people are unethical, does ethics even matter? My answer was – that yes, it matters, for without ethics, where then would we find ourselves?
It is the same thing here, I ask: If majority of the public officials are corrupt, does being honest and transparent even matter? And yes, it matters (at least to me) - if no one valued honestly, and everyone are just out for themselves, looking after their own interest, and just out to gain more power and money at the expense of the public, the country, and the people – then where would we find ourselves?
Is it enough to blatantly declare and believe that since they are all corrupt, that everything Corona has done is just normal, should not be frowned upon, and that because of the rule of law, the check and balances, the wit of the defense team, the constitution and whatnot – that we just all let it go?
Are we just suppose to sit back and watch and no longer hope or demand for something better than this?
I find today’s turn of events just that, it's grim because the defense side will keep pulling stunts, as what we would expect them to do just because they are good lawyers and brilliant strategist. But if we let them run away with this, law or no law, it feels like we just sat and watched, and did nothing.
If Corona and GMA has any ounce of genuine desire for public service as they persist to ironically hold on tight and shamelessly refuse to let go of their government positions, they should just do the country the truest of all public service and just: LET GO.
Fat chance – but I just wanted to say it.
First, I really do not think that CJ’s appointment was a “midnight appointment,” as this prohibition in the Constitution only applies to the executive branch, where the sole power to appoint is placed in the hands of the President (as can also be seen in an old case).
ReplyDeleteThe law is clear, and if the framers of the Constitution wanted to put this restriction on the Judiciary, they could have done so.
While the President can appoint the SC Justices, it also has to pass through the Judicial Bar Council. Only from the candidates approved by the JBC can the President choose.
Second, can the inaccuracies in the SALN be considered an impeachable offense? In my opinion, no. UNLESS the prosecution can show that it was made through graft and corruption. The mere fact that it does not match up does not mean it was illegally obtained. Also, remember that illegally obtained wealth was removed from Article 2. We are now in Article 3 and yet the prosecution has been injecting this topic, something that should not be allowed.
Third, why should the CJ open his bank account? The accusation came from the prosecution, then the prosecution should prove it conclusively, on their own merits. The CJ also has the right against self-incrimination, a right that is enshrined in the Constitution itself. To say that his refusal to open the bank account is tantamount to guilt is patently unfair. Prosecution is merely fishing for information OR they have already violated the FCDU law (that is why they want it to be opened publicly).
Fourth, if you want to talk about reputation and constitutional stability, then asking the CJ to resign would ensure that there would no longer be a system of check and balance. The current President has shown us that his maturity level is that of a 2-yr old child, acting on his whims, creating Executive Orders and appointing people to the detriment of the country. In fact, some of his EOs try to disarm legislation, which should not be allowed.
Also, I feel that you are judging the defense team for using PR tactics, the same PR tactics that the prosecution has employed, and with greater impunity at that.
As for the TRO issued by the SC, I think that it was correctly made. The law is clear and absolute when it comes to the disclosure of the FCDU. Read the law, and on that basis alone you can see that the 8 justices who voted for the issuance of the TRO acted correctly. The justices who voted against it is in direct contravention of the law. IF they feel that the law is incorrect, then it is the House’s duty to amend the law.
If we want to talk about impeachment, it is Pnoy who has to be impeached. The Constitution is built in such a way that there are checks and balances. He wants the Judiciary to be under his control and has been acting on this. He is the one who is in direct contravention of the Constitution – an impeachable offense.
Hello my friend, don't go all lawyer on me. As I have explained over ym. I am not arguing the merits of their cases and tactics. I'm not a lawyer, so I won't really be able to do that. My opinion is about the big picture.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your points (check and balances, etc.) but that's not my point. Like I explained over chat,I'm just stating my opinion on the big picture.
I don't want them to win. It is a power play now. We are already at this point and that's that. Lawful or not, if the Corona /GMA side win - what now? Will they pull another Estrada and destabilize the current government ? Put Binay in? Or make the next term a Villar presidency? So will we be exactly like what we are the past decade? Do we want that? I don't want to go back to that.
It is not about Pnoy - his being his mom's son, his bachelor life, his dating, his inexperienced people... or anything about him because I'm not saying he is the greatest most brilliant man alive.
All I'm saying is I do not want to go back. And, I refuse to say that whatever happened for the last decade is acceptable or that because they are smart enough to get away with it, then they should be able to.
It's not about the legal strategies or the competencies or the ineffectiveness of the camps.
All I am saying is, to put it simply, I would rather a person who is claiming to do anti corruption and is doing more about anti-corruption than any of the other previous governments (I'm not saying it has been a lot - all I'm saying is the previous ones has done nothing) than the other side who is just out there so BLATANT about it, shamelessly doing it just because they are smart enough to cover their tracks and use the law to skirt their way around everything. And, we have no choice but to take it.
That's why I said it's grim. I am perfectly aware that the defense team is very good and that the prosecution team doesn't seem to be doing as well.