Batanes courts no longer in session

BASCO, Batanes — This province holds the distinction of being the only one in the country without any judge to dispense or administer justice. This, aside from being without any practicing private lawyer.

The province is entitled to at least five judges: two for the Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC); two for the Municipal Trial Court (MTC); and one for the Regional Trial Court.

But these slots are all vacant after their respective presiding judges retired. Compounding the situation is the lack of interested applicants to fill up the vacancies.

The Ivana-Uyugan MCTC and Sabtang MTC were the last to enjoy the services of a judge. They became vacant last Feb. 1, following the retirement of Judge Oscar Mata, who opted for an early retirement due to health reasons.

Before he retired, Mata was also the concurrent presiding judge of the Basco-Mahatao MCTC and the Itbayat MTC, which were earlier vacated by Judge Reuben Santana, who retired in 1999 upon reaching the compulsory retirement age of 70.

Without any judge in the municipal courts, the wheels of justice in Batanes’ towns have significantly slowed down.

However, Mata, before he bowed out of service, made sure that the workload of his successor would be light. He left only 26 unresolved cases in the four trial courts under his jurisdiction.

The RTC is similarly situated. Executive Judge Jimmy Henry Luczon Jr. of Branch 1 of the Cagayan RTC, was designated last year to serve, in concurrent capacity, as RTC judge here, following the retirement of Judge Samuel Gonzaga Sr. in 1999.

Although Luczon convened his court here only twice in May and August last year, he managed to dispose of several cases he inherited from his predecessor.

There are now only 16 pending cases in his sala here, compared to the 350 he has in his regular court in Cagayan.

Luczon expects to resolve most, if not all, of the 16 cases when he holds his next marathon hearing here next month.

Apart from the absence of judges, there is not a single private lawyer practicing here. The defense of most cases is usually handled by public attorney Alexius Narag.

Only a handful of respondents could afford to hire the services of Manila-based private counsels. Likewise, complainants appear satisfied with the services of local policemen and provincial state prosecutor Pedro Siazon.