Former UP law college dean says PH not facing a constitutional crisis

MANILA, Philippines - Supreme Court justices are not immune from being made accountable for their acts, a Constitutional law expert said Tuesday.

Former University of the Philippines College of Law dean Marvic Leonen told ANC Tuesday that the impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona shows to the public that "they [justices] are not gods."

He added that the impeachment case tells the people that the justices "are also subject to process."

"There are grounds, there are allegations. This is the Constitution at work, not the Constitution in crisis," Leonen said, in apparent reply to Supreme Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez's claim that the impeachment has resulted in a Constitutional crisis.

"What we should emphasize is the Constitution provides for a mechanism to hold justices, even the President and the vice president and constitutional officers accountable. This is the process of impeachment," said Leonen, who is head of the government's panel negotiating peace with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

"When a justice is impeached, it does not mean that it is an attack on the Supreme Court," he added. "In fact, it is a way of strengthening the Supreme Court."

Leonen denied that Corona's impeachment is a direct assault on the Supreme Court. "An impeachment of a public official does not mean that this is denigrating the institution from where he belongs," he said.

"The Constitution actually says to make all public officials accountable," he added. "We are a democracy and accountability is part of it."

'Look at evidence'

Leonen said the public should avoid speculating on lawmakers' reasons behind Corona's impeachment and instead look at the evidence to be shown in his trial in the Senate when it gets underway.

"There are the articles of impeachment. Perhaps the public should read it and not make speculations as to why it was filed but look at the substance of the articles of impeachment," he said.

"Look at the evidence that will be presented, and then make our judgement before we work on speculations and attribute motives."

He said the allegations against Corona are not only about how he voted in cases that allegedly benefitted former President Arroyo, but also about other issues such as his statements of assets and liabilities as well as the alleged impropriety of his relatives.

"These are allegations. Wait for evidence that will be presented in the Senate," Leonen said.

Not an act of President Aquino

He dismissed speculation that President Benigno Aquino is the hand behind Corona's impeachment.

"This is an action of the House of Representatives... 188 signatures. The House of Representatives, according to the Constitution, has the sole power to initiate an impeachment charge," he said.

"This can be a party decision of the Liberal Party, but this is not an act of the President," he added. "This is an act of the House of Representatives and the trial will happen in the Senate."

He said that while the legislative and executive department "look at each other for signals" because they are political departments, the responsibility lies in the hands of the 188 congressmen who signed the complaint.

"I think they've read... I hope they've read the petition when they filed their endorsement," Leonen said.

"That political act, we would assume, was done rationally," he said. "It is not for us to assume that they did not read it and they simply signed it."

He saw no problem in the House Justice Committee initiating the complaint, citing the 188 signatures that have surpassed the required 1/3 of the body to impeach a government official.

Railroaded impeachment?

Leonen also downplayed suggestions that Corona's impeachment was "railroaded."

"Speed is relative. It depends how long this [case] has been gestating. Probably some of the members of the House were already in the know, probably days or weeks," he said.

"Some people who did not know, certainly they would say that this is ordinarily quick," he said, adding that in any political forum, there would have been discussions among allies about certain issues.

He believes that Aquino is not trying to place Supreme Court under his control.

"The Supreme Court is composed of 15 justices. As far as I know, the President will not be able to appoint a majority of the Supreme Court," he said.

Leonen said if any justice is removed, the Judicial and Bar Council will draw up a list for the justice's replacement.

"If a justice is removed, I am sure the appointee will not be a midnight appointee," he added.