Last year and this year, we’ve been bombarded by scandals, denials and Senate investigations that led to nowhere. These are incontrovertible proof that things have gotten worse in this country since we booted out the Marcos Dictatorship 22 years ago. Back in those days, the opposition’s slogan was, “Justice for Ninoy, Justice for All” (JAJA). The cry of an anguished Filipino nation was a demand for Justice; 22 years later the Judiciary has become just as corrupt as the rest of the government.
The latest scandal to rock the Judiciary was the accusation of bribery in the Court of Appeals (CA). In the past, we’ve already heard of decisions made by the CA that didn’t seem to follow a pattern, like taking the line of previous Supreme Court decisions. That the Justice of the Court of Appeals can go either way, giving some kind of legal wisdom to a corrupt decision gives us an idea of how morally bankrupt many Justices are.
When this scandal in the CA was publicized, everyone wanted to know who is this Associate Justice Jose Sabio Jr.. I also did my own checks, calling my Manila friends. Indeed, all my sources in Manila told me that this fellow is spotless! Taking the cue from Ateneo Professor Emeritus Fr. Joaquin Bernas S.J. who vouched for Justice Sabio’s integrity, I do not doubt this at all. On the other side of the coin, everyone also wanted to know who is this fellow Francis de Borja who tried to tarnish the name of Justice Sabio.
Perhaps because he is a “friend” of the Lopezes, Mr. de Borja immediately got into“offense is the best defense” and got front billing from, where else? ABS-CBN, where he claimed that Justice Sabio demanded from him P50 million. So the big question, is who is telling the truth?
First of all what was Mr. de Borja doing talking with Justice Sabio? Every time he opens his mouth, Mr. de Borja reveals more of this sinister ways. To solve this impasse, no less than Justice Sabio dared Mr. de Borja to take a lie detector test. But will he take it? I doubt it!
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will hear this case in an en banc hearing today. We can only hope that they can immediately solve this problem which has further eroded the already tarnished image of the Judiciary. I remember one of my conversations with former Supreme Court Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. when I asked him whether he agreed with me that corruption in the Judiciary is another form of injustice. He replied with an emphatic,”It is a grave injustice! Corrupt Judges should be taken out of the bench!” During his term, I do recall many judges who were dismissed, including one judge with a famous name who was sacked for having a paramour. But how many more judges out there are corrupt?
Why are these supposed “secret deals” coming out? I don’t know, but we can only take the cue from the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ when he said, “What you say in closed doors will be revealed in the housetops.” This is actually a prediction, because many of our tv aerials receive their signals from the housetops.
While we condemn the corruption in the Judiciary, we must give credit to the majority of our judges whose integrity are untarnished. I know many of them. These are difficult times and we must ask all judges to close ranks at this time and reassure our people that we can still find justice in this land even if it is so distressingly and disturbingly delayed.
They must act swiftly not only in the case of Justice Sabio, but on the many other still unresolved cases happening to many judges throughout the country. A case in point was a news item we read last month about the Supreme Court sending investigators to the Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) in Moalboal, on the allegations that court funds were misused aggravated by the fact that their financial records disappeared. That’s missing cash books, legal fees and collection fees! Were these funds missing or stolen? This investigation was approved no less than by the Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Those missing records stemmed from the time when Judge Victor Teves was assigned as presiding judge at the MCTC in Moalboal. Judge Teves is now presiding judge in Lapu-Lapu City. Now whether the presiding judge is responsible for his Clerk of Court is something we ordinary folk do not know. Meanwhile, the least thing we can expect from Judge Teves is for him to take a vacation while the Supreme Court investigates this incident in Moalboal. In fact the most honorable act Judge Teves ought to do is resign from his position.