MANILA, Philippines - Incoming justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II is planning to implement several reforms in the Department of Justice (DOJ), including the creation of a new office dedicated solely to declogging its docket.
Aguirre plans to hire about 20 young lawyers who will focus on resolving pending motions for reconsideration (MRs) in the department.
“There are about 20,000 MRs pending with the DOJ. We should resolve them and these young lawyers would handle that,” Aguirre said.
Earlier, he revealed that incoming president Rodrigo Duterte wants him to prioritize cases involving corruption and illegal drugs.
He is also planning to come up with a better system of prosecuting drug cases and pursue strict rules in handling evidence.
Meanwhile, acting Justice Secretary Emmanuel Caparas welcomed Aguirre’s plan to reorganize the department and its attached agencies, particularly the National Bureau of Investigation.
“A well-studied and well-implemented reorganization will do those agencies plenty of good. A proper reorganization would need to target increased efficiency, accountability, professionalism and transparency,” he said.