3 related events

We are witnessing momentous events related to each other these days. The three events are the rift with China, the impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona and the case against Smartmatic-PCOS in the Supreme Court. It will take a book to demonstrate why. Suffice it to say for the moment that the three are related to give us a better perspective.

Let’s start with the rift with China because it is the most sensitive to our country. The dispute between the Philippines and China about claims in the South China Sea has been ongoing generally through diplomatic maneuvering but recently there was a sudden flare up in the Scarborough Shoal.

A Philippine Navy Ship attempted to arrest Chinese fishermen in what has traditionally been a common fishing ground of Filipino and Chinese fishermen.

That attempted arrest was followed by accusations and counter-accusations with talk about “going to war for possession.” Recently, the dispute has turned economic with Chinese retaliating for what they call a provocation by Philippine authorities.

The Philippines under the Aquino government invoked American protection if armed hostility broke out. Although US authorities have said they are neutral and want China and other claimants to resolve the issue through diplomacy, it has also wielded the big stick with US-Philippine joint war exercises and more recently visits of US warships in the area. It is well known that the US is concerned about “free navigation” in the maritime heartland in a region dominated by China.

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The second event is the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona. It may seem like a purely local concern but it becomes relevant because competent government comes into question in both instances. Moreover, CJ Corona is regarded as an enemy by the Aquino government because he was appointed to the post by former President Gloria M. Arroyo. There is no love lost between the former president and the US government who saw her administration as being “too friendly” with China.

There are other factors involved in this drama, the most important of which is the case against Hacienda Luisita that is owned by President Aquino’s family. After festering in the courts for many years, decades and different governments, the justices under Corona’s leadership made the decision final and executory.

That is why the President is determined to convict Corona as an undesirable public official by hook or by crook.

The presentation of the Ombudsman on Corona’s dollar accounts is the latest gambit by Aquino in this war of attrition.

I am not a lawyer but it is obvious that a President with the powers of Chief Executive will do everything to ensure that he wins the battle, if not the war.

The Aquino government has been accused for breaking the law to convict the chief justice and ultimately weaken the judiciary.

The presentation by Ombudsman former Justice Conchita Carpio Morales to prove that Corona had dollar accounts worth $10 million even $12 million according to reports is under question. Moreover, according to the prosecution there were movements of the money in 82 accounts in the election years of 2004 and 2007 and lately just before Corona’s impeachment. He is now open to charges of plunder. The implication is that he was an alleged accomplice in election sabotage that the former president is being charged.

Unfortunately, all the evidence so far presented by the prosecution including the Corona’s $10 or $12 million accounts do not meet the rules of evidence.

According to Wikipedia, the rules of evidence have been developed through centuries based on the rules from Anglo-American common law that has been followed by Philippine law.

“The purpose is to be fair to both parties by disallowing allegations without a basis in provable fact. These are sometimes criticized as legal technicalities but are an important part of the system for achieving a just result.”

If the impeachment is to follow legal procedures, accusations against the chief justice and the dollar deposits (if any) must follow the rules of evidence. If the evidence has been illegally obtained it cannot be used in a court trial or in an impeachment court purporting to follow the rule of law.

All the court players are expected to follow the rules. If not, this would open the gates of abuse because it would allow anyone to simply tell the court what one says is the truth. The rules of evidence prohibit litigants from presenting one’s story just as one likes.

Perhaps the most important and familiar to more people in the rules of evidence is hearsay testimony. It is a two-edged sword. On one hand, it becomes difficult to present proof and on the other, it protects against reckless allegations by partisan interests.

In the Corona impeachment case evidences presented by the prosecution are even more suspect because it violates another rule of law that a person is innocent until proven guilty. From the start CJ Corona, with the help of media and the awesome powers of the executive branch of government, have been used to make him guilty even before he has proved his innocence.

That is why his appearance in court on Tuesday has more impact than his testimony. It is about respect for the law and individual rights indispensable to civilized society.

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The third, on the case before the Supreme Court against Smartmatic PCOS might seem unrelated to the two issues. On the contrary, I think it is the lynchpin. It is also about the law but with more encompassing implications.

It calls into question the May 2010 elections. It is not about winners or the losers but about an event that removed the vote from Filipinos and transferred their sovereign power to machines by a foreign company’s electoral system.

We are confronted with a choice whether we should allow it to happen again. Competent Filipinos have filed a case against the Commission on Elections. The memorandum was filed yesterday by Tanggol Demokrasya.

Here are the salient points in the memorandum:

The deed of sale dated 30 March 2012 for the purchase of listed goods is illegal and therefore null and void because it was executed pursuant to an expired and thus non-existent option to purchase disregarding the mandatory requirements of public bidding for government procurement.

The PCOS based AES (Automatic electoral system) of Smartmatic-TIM failed the requisite minimum accuracy of 99.995%.

It operated without the functional digital signatures required by law.

What would have been the results if we had an election by persons instead of machines? We would never know. But we see the causes that brought about incompetent government.