It titillates and excites some sectors, but the prospect of Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Reynato Puno contesting the presidency next year could backfire on the judiciary’s independence.

Elections lawyer Sixto Brillantes said Puno will have to resign from his post if he seeks the presidency, as mandated by Republic Act (RA) 9369, the law on elections automation.

Section 13 of RA 9369 states that “any person holding a public appointive office or position, including active members of the armed forces, and officers, and employees in government-owned-or-controlled corporations, shall be considered ipso facto resigned from his/her office and must vacate the same at the start of the day of the filing of his/her certification of candidacy.”

This means that if the nationwide automation of elections will push through, Puno will have to give up his post as early as January since the deadline for the filing of candidacy will have to be scheduled on an earlier date. 

Early deadline

The earlier deadline is meant to allow the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to finalize and prepare the list of national and local candidates and party-list groups for inclusion in the ballot, Commissioners Rene Sarmiento and Nicodemo Ferrer said in separate interviews.

The Comelec is eyeing the Optical Mark Reader (OMR) machine, which would require the printing of the names of candidates on the ballots. The OMR is cheaper than the direct recording equipment, the other technology used in the elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Puno’s retirement as chief justice is slated on May 17, 2010, when he turns 70, the mandatory age of retirement. Thus, if he decides to enter the political scene, he would abbreviate his tenure by almost four months.

But Puno’s effective resignation by January, in case he decides to run, will allow the President to appoint his replacement, a scenario that Malacañang has been aching for since last year. This is because the prohibition on appointment prior to election day would not yet be in effect. The appointments ban starts on Feb. 9, 2010 or 90 days before May 10, 2010.

In such a case, Ferrer and Sarmiento said nothing would prevent the President from naming Puno’s successor. “Yes, she can appoint,” the two concurred.

Corona will be Chief Justice?

Court insiders said Arroyo’s personal choice for next chief justice is Justice Renato Corona, who has been voting consistently in favor of the administration. She is expected to bypass the more senior Justice Antonio Carpio, who has taken positions that do not necessarily favor government interests. Carpio was Arroyo’s first appointee to the tribunal.

If she is able to appoint Corona, her former chief of staff, she is ensured of a loyal ally in the SC beyond her term in 2010. Corona’s retirement is slated on Oct. 14, 2018.

Such a scenario will further undermine the perceived lack of independence of the judiciary from the Palace. Already, Arroyo has picked 13 of the 15-man SC. Only last week, she appointed a close ally, Justice Diosdado Peralta, to the High Court. With six more to be filled up this year, fears of an "Arroyo SC" would actually happen.
 
Various sectors have been urging Puno to run for President, including Senator Panfilo Lacson, former Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines Archbishop Oscar Cruz, and the Makati Business Club.

The bandwagon was triggered by the reported impeach attempt against Puno for not promulgating a congressional election case.

As early as October, Puno had said that various groups have been enticing him to seek the presidency. He was also quoted as saying in one report that the presidency is a matter of destiny.

But SC spokesman Midas Marquez stressed that Puno “is definitely not running.” He said that  despite the reported signature campaign to urge him to run, “he prefers to stay in judiciary and introduce improvements.”