Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno Won’t Sign Bank Secrecy Waiver
The camp of Chief Justice Ma.
Lourdes Sereno on Monday, October 09, said she will not sign a waiver on bank
secrecy since it was submitted to the Supreme Court (SC) in connection with the
impeachment complaint filed against her by Atty. Lorenzo Gadon before the House
justice committee.
Gadon earlier called on the Chief
Justice to sign a waiver to allow investigative bodies to examine her bank
assets amid charges of hidden wealth.
Atty. Josa Deinla, one of the
Sereno’s spokespersons, said the Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth
(SALN) submitted by Sereno to the SC already included a waiver allowing the
Office of the Ombudsman and other bodies to examine the Chief Justice’s assets.
“That (waiver) is no longer necessary
because the standard form of SALN authorizes the Ombudsman and other
investigative bodies to conduct an examination,” Deinla told reporters in a
press conference in Manila.
Deinla insisted that the
impeachment complaint against Sereno has no basis in the Constitution to
warrant a trial.
“This is a waste of time, this is
a waste or energy, this is a distraction,” she said.
Among the allegations in the
impeachment complaint against the Sereno is her failure to declare in her SALN
from 2010 to 2016 the Php30 million she earned as one of the private counsels
of government in the arbitration case involving the expropriation of the Ninoy
Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.
In 2010 when she was appointed
associate justice of the SC, Sereno declared a net worth of Php17.7 million –
almost half only of the Php30 million pay she got from the NAIA 3 case.
Bulk of the amount is the worth of
her real properties and vehicles.
Only Php1.5 million was declared
as cash in bank and P1.5 million as investments.
In her 2016 SALN, Sereno’s net
worth grew to Php24.2 million.
The Sereno camp welcomes the move
of the Senate to start reviewing the impeachment trial rules even pending the
proceedings in the House of Representatives.
Lawyer Aldwin Salumbides, one of
the spokespersons for defense, said the disclosure of Senate President Aquilino
“Koko” Pimentel III that they are now reviewing its impeachment trial rules was
actually a sign of “good leadership.”
“It only shows the ability of our
senators to be pro-active. I think there is nothing wrong with preparing for
such possibilities,” Salumbides told reporters during the press conference.
Senator Pimentel earlier told
Sereno’s camp that the Senate was reviewing its impeachment trial rules to
ensure it would be more than just a numbers game.
He assured that the conclusion of
the Senate, sitting as impeachment court, is supported by evidence.
Earlier, Gadon welcomed the latest
decision of the House committee on justice finding sufficiency of grounds for
impeachment of Sereno via clear 25-2 vote despite the answers submitted by her
camp.
“This development has demonstrated
the fact that the case is strong and that the arguments of the Sereno camp are
weak. I am very positive that impeachment complaint will be transmitted to the
Senate soon with overwhelming votes by the members of the House in a plenary
voting,” the lawyer added.
Meanwhile, Deinla also opposed
Gadon’s pronouncement saying President Rodrigo Duterte may serve as special
private prosecutor during the impeachment trial.
Deinla insisted that the President
is not allowed by any law to act as such during the impeachment trial.
“It will be an encroachment on the
exclusive power of the House of Representatives to act as prosecutors in the
impeachment trial,” Deinla said.
“The president has no role in such
political exercise,” Salumbides added.
Last Thursday, the House justice
committee found sufficient grounds in the impeachment complaint against Sereno.
A total of 25 lawmakers voted in favor
of Misamis Occidental Representative Henry Oaminal’s motion to approve the
sufficiency of the grounds for impeachment against the top magistrate.
Only two lawmakers voted against
it.
“The complaint alleges sufficient
ground for impeachment and thereafter we will now move to the next stage which
is the determination of probable cause,” committee chair Reynaldo Umali said.
The impeachment complaint filed by
Gadon contains four grounds for impeachment including culpable violation of the
Constitution, corruption, other high crimes, and betrayal of public trust.
It also alleged 27 acts
constituting the offenses charged.
Albay Representative Edcel Lagman
recommended discussing the grounds of the impeachment complaint separately.
Umali, however, reiterated that
the committee will apply the totality rule in deliberating on the impeachment
complaint.
Source: Philippine News Agency
Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno Won’t Sign Bank Secrecy Waiver
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October 12, 2017
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