‘Big on pontification, small on delivery of justice’

One of the grounds raised in the impeachment proceedings against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is her alleged delay in acting on Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre’s request to transfer the terrorists arrested in Marawi City to any place outside of Mindanao. Invited as a resource person on Nov. 28 before the House of Representatives justice committee, Aguirre claimed the delay of about 50 days was unreasonable given the extreme urgency of the matter involved.

Speaking of undue delays, there is absolutely nothing new in that charge as far as the Supreme Court, or any of its justices, is concerned. All its members are impeachable for “culpable violation of the Constitution” as they have continually ignored the prescribed period categorically provided for in the Constitution ordaining that cases before them should be resolved within two years. Thousands of such cases have remained undecided even after 10 or so years! And those “gods of Padre Faura” have the nerve to overrule what the people have ratified and say that period can only be a “suggestion” and nothing else?!

Thus, excepting only those who have retired and are now enjoying the multimillion-peso package of benefits despite their own indolence, all of the incumbent members should be held accountable unless their appointment was made only recently. They should have the delicadeza to resign if they are not up to the task that the sovereign people (from whom “all government authority emanates”) have placed upon them.

The Supreme Court is extremely big on pontification but pathetically small on actual delivery of justice.

MARCELO “JR” GARCIS, [email protected]