MANILA, Philippines – The panel composed of three retired Supreme Court justices tasked to probe the alleged improprieties committed by Court of Appeals justices in handling the Manila Electric Co. board election row yesterday submitted its findings and recommendations to Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Court spokesman Midas Marquez told reporters that the report of the panel is confidential and will be up for deliberation by the 15 justices of the Supreme Court in their next session on Sept. 9.
According to Marquez, the court is expected to come out with its decision weeks after the session.
The panel headed by retired Supreme Court associate justice Carolina Griño-Aquino and composed of justices Flerida Ruth Romero and Romeo Callejo personally handed their report to Puno.
Marquez said the tribunal could choose either to adopt the panel’s report or discard it and come up with its own conclusion on the case.
The Supreme Court formed the panel last Aug. 4 and ordered it to hold daily hearings starting Aug. 7.
It was supposed to finish its hearings and submit its report last Aug. 21 but the deadline was extended until yesterday to give the panel time to summon more witnesses.
Last July 31, after a rare session, the CA ordered the feuding justices in the Meralco case to submit themselves to the investigation of the Supreme Court. – Mike Frialde