PerryScope
By Perry Diaz
As the Senate impeachment trial of Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona is about to begin, the intensity of public outrage against him has reached fever pitch. Recent disclosures that he owns several real estate properties triggered demands that he release his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN), which is a constitutional requirement. Calls for his resignation abound. But he defiantly stood his ground. He is going to fight to the end!
By the numbers
The Senate impeachment trial will start on January 16, 2012. Corona is accused of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, and graft and corruption. There are eight articles of impeachment transmitted to the Senate by the House of Representatives, which impeached Corona based on the signatures of 188 congressmen. A minimum of 95 signatures was required to impeach.
Corona assembled a battery of 15 seasoned defense lawyers ready to face 11 congressman-prosecutors and 23 senator-judges who will pass judgment on each of the eight articles of impeachment.
Conviction — which needs a 2/3 majority or 16 votes — on one article of impeachment would be enough to remove Corona from office regardless of the verdict on the other seven articles. Acquittal needs eight votes on all articles.
Fate or karma?
Public opinion is overwhelmingly in favor of the impeachment of Corona. About 70% of the people support President Benigno “P-Noy” Aquino III’s initiative to remove Corona from office. Most of Corona’s supporters are politicians allied with former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, opinion writers who have a long history of siding with Gloria, and those who have a long history of criticizing P-Noy. Indeed, the impeachment trial is all about Gloria. If Corona wins, Gloria walks. It’s as simple as that.
If not for Justice Secretary Leila de Lima who defiantly ignored the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court in a lightning fashion, Gloria and her husband Mike Arroyo would now be safe in a foreign country with no extradition treaty with the Philippines. But it must be fate – or karma – that did the Arroyos in.
Their “escape plan” was executed with clockwork precision. But just like the movie, “The Great Escape,” in which Steve McQueen almost made it across the Swiss border in a motorcycle but got snagged by barbed wires right at the border, “Queen” Gloria almost made it to the airplane that would have brought her to “freedom” but was stopped at the tarmac by immigration officials on De Lima’s order.
It’s all about Gloria
But what we’re dealing here is a real-life situation, where the freedom of 97 million Filipinos to live in a democratic society is threatened by a Supreme Court packed with Gloria’s appointees whose loyalty to Gloria seems to be the secret covenant attached to their oath of office. As I jokingly said of Corona’s oath of office recently, “My loyalty to the Constitution ends where my loyalty to Gloria begins.”
It did not then come as a surprise when P-Noy made his move to impeach Corona. He knew that if Corona remains as Chief Justice until his mandatory age retirement in 2018, P-Noy would never be able to fulfill his promise to the people to rid the government of corruption and poverty. And Gloria would go scot-free, never to face justice again for as long as Corona remains as Chief Justice.
“Walang korap, walang mahirap” would just become one of those sound bytes associated with failure of leadership. He would be a lame duck president for four long years until he steps down in 2016 or resign in shame. He would be the butt of jokes by his political enemies, and his allies would shun him, not out of disrespect but out of pity.
That would be the advent of the Arroyo-Corona “axis of evil,” which would restore the abbreviated reign of Gloria. With Corona and the other “Arroyo justices” in a position where they could interpret the Constitution any which way they want, the country could be heading towards a plutocratic oligarchy never seen before, even during the time of Marcos. There is no shadow of a doubt that Gloria still harbors a desire to be back in power. Simply put, she would not live a life in prison. She has to get out and back in the saddle again. And the “Coronarroyo Court” would be there to protect her. Indeed, a restored Arroyo regime would make Marcos look like a boy scout.
Obstacles
When the Senate impeachment trial begins on January 16, the senator-judges will decide on the motion of Corona to declare the articles of impeachment invalid because Corona claimed that a majority of the 188 signatories did not read the articles. If the Senator-judges rule in favor of Corona, then that would the end of it.
The following day, January 17, the Supreme Court en banc will meet to rule on six separate petitions to stop the impeachment trial for various reasons. The petitioners asked the high court to issue a TRO against the impeachment trial. More than likely the petitions would be consolidated into one; thus, resulting in one ruling only. If the Supreme Court rules against the consolidated petition, then that would be the end of the impeachment trial.
Any of these “threats” to short-circuit the impeachment trial would definitely cause public uproar and unrest. I would not be surprised if that would ignite people power.
However, if the Supreme Court rules against the consolidated petition, then the show goes on. The impeachment trial could become nasty and brutal. Corona and his family members’ lives would be turned inside out and expose everything they have, particularly his wife Cristina who is under investigation by the Department of Justice for alleged abuse and misuse of public funds during her tenure as Chairman and President of the Camp John Hay Management Corporation.
In my article, “Corona’s Achilles heel” (December 28, 2011), I wrote: “But at the end of the day, it would all come down to a conjugal decision on how Corona should play his hand at his impeachment trial. Corona and his wife are both in this together. If one went down, the other would go down, too. Or, they can cut their losses and move on with their lives. And all it would take is for Corona to take the fall – resign — in order to protect his Achilles heel… Cristina.”
Corona’s situation reminds me when U.S. Senator Paul Laxalt called Marcos at Malacañang at 5:30 a.m. on that fateful day Feb. 25, 1986. “Senator, what do you think?” Marcos asked. “I think you should cut and cut clean,” Laxalt responded. “I think the time has come.” The silence was deafening. “Mr. President, are you still there?” Laxalt said. “I’m here, Senator,” Marcos answered softly, “I’m very, very disappointed.” Marcos and his family left the country to exile in Hawaii. It prevented further turmoil and bloodshed.
Corona should do a Marcos. The time has come for him to cut and cut clean! That is the right thing to do.
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“The world suffers a lot. Not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!” – Napoleon
Perry, I hope that you are not suggesting that if Corona resigns, he is cleansed from all liabilities.
Are you suggesting that he be forgiven for receiving the monies he received to purchase those expensive real estate properties?
Are the laws allowing for recovering stolen assets and paying taxes on all earnings waived because of that person’s resignation or impeachment?
If it is true that he received monies to purchase those properties, was he not supposed
to pay taxes on those money? What is the penalty for not paying taxes on money earned,
regardless on how it was earned?
For sure, there must be harsher penalty for corruption than just losing one’s job.
I suggest (1) confiscation of ALL assets, (2) permanent removal from Civil Service, and (3) forfeiture of ALL government pensions and benefits.
As a people, are we Filipinos not too kind and easily forgiving for our own good? What happened to the “pabaon” received by the late Gen. Angelo Reyes? Are those forgiven because of his death? Have the taxes been paid on those “earnings”?
Us Filipinos should rethink what our own kindness and forgiving nature is causing us.
We must do more thinking and be aware that our kind nature is leaving us exposed to exploitation by others.
CORONA MUST EXIT AND CUT CLEAN FOR HIS SAKE AND THE SAKE OF HIS FAMILY AND THE NATION..
UNLESS OF COURSE, WALA NG NATITIRANG KAHIBLANG HONOR SA KANYANG BUDHI.
LAHAT NG MGA ALIPURIS NI GMA AT ISA NA SIYA ,AY MAKAPAL PA SA BALAT NG KALABAW ANG MGA MUKHA. MATATAKAW, MAGNANAKAW AT WALANG KONSENSIYA.
MGA MANIAC SA KATAKAWAN. MANIAC SA PAGNANAKAW. THEY DON’T CARE IF THEY FEED THEIR CHILDREN AND RELATIVES SA MGA NAKAW NA PAGKAIN. KARMA WORKS ALL THE TIME.
Resignation won’t help. Only a Garcia or a Reyes will do.
It is my opinion that Corona should have declined his appointment. I also believe that GMA did that to protect her back. Having said that, my question is, would it not be “lutong macaw” for
P-Noy to appoint a new CJ that would make the SC a rubber stamp like the Lower House who meekly surrendered their independence to P-Noy by railroading the impeachment of Corona? If Corona goes, the SC will be controlled by P-Noy, like it was controlled by GMA. Are the Filipinos who hate both GMA and Corona prepared to make P-Noy an absolute ruler? What would then stop P-Noy from telling the SC to reverse its decision re HL? Just thinking aloud.
Let the impeachment case proceed for two reasons.
1) CJ Corona committed already to defend himself and, on behalf of the judiciary, against the combined charges of the Executive and the Legislative branches.
2) The result of impeachment case will justify the power of the president to appoint a chief justice in case of a vacant position, if Corona is acquitted along that line.
Also, if along that line, Corona is found guilty as a midnight appointee, then GMA is equally guilty.
There is really a need to review and amend the Cory Constitution after the result of impeachment case.
1) There are two articles in the constitution that contradict each other when it comes to the appointment of chief justice because of vacancy and the ban to midnight appointees.
2) Personally, I think the President should not be empowered to appoint justices to Supreme Court if the Constitution is objective in the separation of powers among the 3 branches of the government.
I would even consider the Judicial and Bar Council to be the appointing body for the Supreme Court Justices, minus the representatives from the Executive and Legislative branches as members.
Paano aasenso ang bansa kung ang batas ay may ‘butas’. Dapat either BLACK OR WHITE not GRAY.
Would getting rid of Corona solve all the ills in our Justice system? Are we to believe that the people who are about to try this sorry excuse for a chief justice are any better than him in terms of principles and integrity? Filipinos in a position of power are all the same, they seem to think that the title makes them better than the rest, heck even a manager from Jollybee sometime act like a tyrant. I think this trait is a part of our DNA and altering it would probably require divine intervention.
A Supreme Court controlled by P-Noy as would result after Corona is impeached, or a SC headed by Corona (if he survives impeachment) which will continue check and balance? Take your pick. If we are to choose between two evils, common sense dictates we choose the lesser one of the two. A SC controlled by Aquino is definitely not the lesser evil. With a subservient Lower House, a rubber stamp SC is all Aquino needs to make himself an absolute ruler. Does P-Noy have that ambition? You betcha! That is why he has brazenly said that his Plan B shall be launched should the Senate acquit Corona. He is after all a Cojuangco and will not allow the loss of HL come he’ll or high water. Tocayo Karate is so right in his very accurate assessment of what Pinoy in power will always behave. Remember the late Speaker Jose Avelino who once said on the floor of the House, “what are we in power for?” Think about that before you choose between the two evils now confronting la nuestra patria adorada!
Oops please read that Karate as Serate. Sorry!
The Senate under the circumstance should not entertain a TRO from the SC. It will thwart the process and will obstruct mandated protocol. Even Corona’s pleading to subject the speaker to be summon on the process of questioning the impeachment signatories procedure is encroaching on processes and proceedings on its house rule beyond the sanction of the Supreme Court.
That is not a remedy that is accorded by Corona because the rule is bipartisan, a number game determine by process as mandated in the house
and.
Corona is acting like an absolute king, forgetting that he is the one under indictment of impeachable offense leading to termination..
Even a scenario of being acquitted of all charges, if the senate will verdict loss of confidence, such will kick him out of his office or terminated.
Could the Supreme court then issue contempt against a duly constituted body ? Of course not. The senate. n rendering judgment, the final arbiter of the impeachment proceeding.
Estrada’s case review
The ouster of Estrada during the senate review didn’t mandate Estrada’s resignation or ouster. Coup d’ etat, People’s Power ll (anarchy or mob rule conspiracy) outs Estrada by the abandonment of Chief of the Arm Forces, Gen. Angelo Reyes and Gen. Panfilo Lacson, the PNP chief.
The Commander in Chief by mandate could have invoke emergency power by ordering the senators’ arrest and declare martial law to restore order or a Military Junta could taken charge, but divine intervention takes its course, the rest is history.
Mark Alegre
(Sent by email)
Hi Mark,
I agree with you 100%. The Senate impeachment court is a constitutional mandate that cannot be stopped by the Supreme Court. Sen. Escudero was interviewed by ANC earlier today and was asked the same question. His answer was that it could lead to a constitutional crisis because the Senate would be put in an awkward position to deal with a TRO.
Perry