Baguio City—Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes A. Sereno has assured her supporters that she would not back down from her fight to remain in her post despite President Duterte’s public pronouncements calling for her immediate ouster.
The leadership of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, meanwhile, vowed to approve the Articles of Impeachment against the chief magistrate at least within two weeks after session resumes on May 14. Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez, in a news statement, expressed confidence that the lower chamber would be able to approve the impeachment of Sereno within a week or two after the resumption of session of Congress on May 14.
Following her intense grilling by her fellow magistrates during the oral arguments on the quo warranto petition filed by Solicitor General Jose C. Calida, Sereno immediately faced her supporters on Tuesday evening and assured them that she would not abandon her post without a fight.
“Walang atrasan! Tuloy ang laban! [There’s no retreat! The fight continues!],” she said before dozens of supporters who showed up near the SC compound during the six-hour hearing.
Sereno referred to herself as “a defender of democracy” and told her supporters that she would not bow down to the powers-that-be.
“You’ve all seen how we defended our rights to protect our freedom against oppressors who are destroying our democracy,” she declared.
“We should not allow those in power to oppress us. You know what I mean. We have to fight in all fronts to make sure that democracy in the Philippines will remain,” Sereno added.
On Monday Sereno publicly accused President Duterte of being behind moves to oust her.
An apparently irked Duterte quickly responded and called for Sereno’s ouster, branding her as an “enemy” of the government and asked Congress to “fast-track” the impeachment proceedings.
Sereno refused to be interviewed by the media after the grueling oral arguments, which put those who witnessed the proceedings on the edge of their seats as she engaged her fellow magistrates in a heated exchange of arguments that centered on her supposed failure to produce her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALN) covering several years as required by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) when she applied for the Judiciary post.
Sereno’s supposed failure to file her SALNs for several years is the major ground raised by Calida in filling the quo warranto petition.
A quo warranto petition, as provided in both Section 5(1), Article VIII of the Constitution and Rule 66 of the Rules of Court, challenges the legal basis of one’s appointment and seeks the removal of the respondent from office because of lack of qualification or legal basis to continue holding such office.
Tuesday’s oral arguments was a historic event in the 15-man High Tribunal, considering that it was the first time a sitting Chief Justice was grilled by her fellow magistrates with regard to her eligibility to her post.
During the oral arguments, Sereno maintained that she had met the specific qualification of proven integrity and complied with all the requirements of the JBC when she was being considered for the top judicial post in 2012.
Sereno said the fact the JBC shortlisted her proved that its members, including then-JBC ex-officio chairman SC Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta, found her to have “substantially complied” with all the requirements, including the submission of SALNs.
JBC records showed that Sereno submitted three SALNs, which she filed annually since she was appointed SC associate justice in 2010.
The SALNs covered the years 2009, 2010 and 2011. Sereno was in private practice prior to her appointment to the High Court.
“Everything was done in good faith. If they [JBC members] found that my three SALNs were not sufficient, they could have struck me out of the short list,” Sereno said during the oral arguments ,while responding to questions propounded by Associate Justice Teresita Leonardo de Castro.
“I never knew what was happening inside the JBC. If they considered that sufficient, then that’s it. How could I second guess?” Sereno added.
The Chief Justice noted that the JBC had 11 chances to exclude her from the short list on the ground of her incomplete submission of SALNs, but it never did.
But Calida also insisted that the appointment of Sereno should be voided because of her ineligibility, particularly lack of proven integrity due to her false and incomplete SALNs.
“Sereno has not shown that she is a person of proven integrity, which is an indispensable qualification for membership in the Judiciary,” he said in a news statement after the oral arguments.
The solicitor general also debunked Sereno’s warning that the quo warranto case would open a floodgate of future cases against other justices of the SC.
“This case is not about eroding the independence of the Judiciary. It is about preserving the honor and dignity of the Supreme Court as an institution,” Calida said.
‘It’s done’
“Our intention was to approve these before we took a break, but we didn’t have enough time to do it. I’m sure that after the resumption of session we can approve these in plenary within one or two weeks,” Alvarez said.
Before Congress adjourned on March 21 the Committee on Rules referred the matter for plenary consideration.
According to Alvarez, the House Committee on Justice had already found probable cause to impeach Sereno and prepared the corresponding committee report and Articles of Impeachment against her.
The vote of at least one-third of all members of the House of Representatives is needed to approve the Articles of Impeachment and transmit the case to the Senate for trial.
Earlier, Alvarez said he would heed the call of President Duterte to fast-track Sereno’s impeachment. Duterte said Sereno is now his enemy and that she has to be out of the SC.
“It will be done once we resume sessions,” Alvarez added.