ACTING Chief Justice Antonio Carpio on Wednesday said he may be inclined to turn down any possible nomination as the next Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, a post declared vacant following the Court’s final decision nullifying Maria Lourdes A. Sereno’s 2012 appointment as chief magistrate.
In a television interview, Carpio said he is ready to decline all nominations that will be submitted to the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC), which has been directed to start the search for the next CJ.
Carpio indicated that he will be turning down the nomination out of delicadeza, considering that he voted against the granting of the quo warranto petition that was filed by Solicitor General Jose C. Calida, which became the basis of Sereno’s ouster.
“On a personal level, because I voted against it, I don’t want to benefit from it so I will decline any nomination.
“I have to be consistent with my position that the quo warranto was not the correct or proper way to remove a sitting member of the Court,” Carpio said.
Carpio was one of the six justices who dissented from the majority ruling removing Sereno from her post.
Though he voted against Sereno’s removal, Carpio said, however, the former CJ committed culpable violation of the Constitution when she failed to submit all her statement of assets, liabilities and net worth at the time she applied for the CJ position in 2012.
In addition, Carpio pointed out that being CJ would not necessarily mean that the rest of the associate justices would follow him.
“They will follow you if your ponencia, your decision is correct, if it is convincing, if it is powerful, not because you’re Chief Justice,” Carpio said.
On Tuesday the High Tribunal junked Sereno’s motion for reconsideration of its May 11 decision, which found her ineligible for the CJ post.
In the same ruling, the Court gave the JBC the go-ahead to start accepting applicants and nominees for the CJ position since under the Constitution, the President has 90 days to fill up a vacancy in the Judiciary.
Carpio was appointed to the SC in 2001 and is set to retire from the Judiciary in 2019.
Carpio, who is currently the ex-officio chairman of the JBC, said the council is set to meet next week to discuss the selection process.
The other members of the JBC are Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, Sen. Richard Gordon and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, retired SC Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza representing the justices and chairman of its executive committee; lawyer Jose Mejia, representing academe; lawyer Milagros Fernan-Cayosa, representing the Integrated Bar of the Philippines; and retired judge Toribio Ilao, representing the private sector.