If I were a senator judge…
To my esteemed colleagues in the Senate, to our presiding officer Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, to the members of both prosecution and defense panel, to the people of the Republic of the Philippines, good afternoon.
Today we make a new chapter in the History of our Archipelago, we are called to decide wether we have to convict or acquit the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Renato Coronado Corona. Among the previous eight, now only three articles of impeachment, article II is the most discussed and the real basis to find a culpable violation of the public trust. the Statement of assets, liabilities and net worth, or commonly known as SALN, is the best way for a public official to be transparent in his transactions and business affairs, because I strongly believe that once a man enters in the public service, his first duty is not only to fulfill in the best way to his mandate given to him by the people, through a complete conformity to the principle of the Constitution, but also to be sincere in his financial stability, since this is the main starting point for a lot of graft a corrupted practices, aiming to gain ill gotten wealth.
As already stated many times during this impeachment proceeding, this trial is not merely judicial, but, as stated by Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, it is quasi judicial and quasi political. In short, as judges we are called to decide on this issue not only on a merely judicial point of view, but inevitably, we also have to consider the echo that this court’s decision might imply in all the fields of our nation.
Many times we had proofs that a man who has a political advocate, and at the same time is a successful business inteupreneur, at a certain point has to defend himself before a court. I am an italian citizen and recently my country was on the headlines of all the main news papers of the world for the step down of former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, who failed to obtain the majority during a vote in the House of representatives. Berlusconi had also different pending cases before the italian court, which are now occupying mostly of his time now. those cases are all related to his fame as a good business man.
This might be only one example of many other politicians, or public servants who came across the blind folded lady Justice. I believe that Chief Justice Corona is a good citizen: he is a registered lawyer of this country, he worked as a private jurist, he entered in the public service as a member of the Supreme Court and was appointed Chief Justice by former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Trough the year he made to save some money for his family, as a good pater familiae, he invested his funds in foreign currency in order to gain interests, and as the years passed he made to buy some properties, condominium units and parking lots. As a second year student at the law faculty of the University of Turin, I often told to myself: ” is this not my dream too? to be a good lawyer and to save money for my family? to spend my time in defending the truth with the Constitution as my shield?”. I see in Chief Justice Corona the realization of a man’ career and a good citizen.
We spent 45 days in this court to listen to both parties, hearing testimonies, proving facts and analyzing evidences. But the heart of the trial was in Corona’s testimony last week. As Sen. Enrile said, we have to decide based on the facts, and not on the hearsay. The fact is that Chief Justice Corona admitted that he has 2.5 million dollar account and 80 million pesos in co-mingled fund with other members of his family. These do not appear on the SALN. to defend himself, Corona mentioned the foreign currency deposit act, which established the strictly confidentiality of the foreign accounts. He might be right, but this law is not in contradiction with the “Saligang Batas”, which covers the SALN with a mandatory and constitutional provision. The foreign currency deposit act was intended to preserve from public disclosure and to keep the privacy on the foreign investors, who decided to invest in our country.
We are not in a case of “lex specialis derogat generali”, a particular law that constitutes a dispensation from a general provision. If that is the case then we shall declare this act as inconstitutional. but as I said this is not the case. “Dura lex sed lex” CJ Corona, a hard law, but this is the law. And you know that is our duty to implement it.
Before my final statement I would like to express my disagreement with the modus operandi of the house of representatives, prosecution panel. In many times you showed to this court evidences from an anonymous source, you gave documents, stating false allegations to the media, knowing that this impeachment proceeding is followed by the whole nation as “Coronanovela”. The report of the Ombudsman Morales based on the AMLC report did not followed the right process of asking the permission first to this court before disclosing the alleged dollar accounts. And let’s not forget the mistake in presenting 45 properties through the LRA, which at the end revealed to be only 5.
I hope this could be the start of something new in our country. Let us stand united and build a better future for our children, for our youth…
I vote guilty.
