‘Luisita buying time for miracle’

Saying the management of Hacienda Luisita was trying to buy time pending the possible impeachment of Chief Justice Renato Corona, a farmers’ union asked the Supreme Court to reject management’s appeal to overturn a high court ruling to redistribute the huge sugar plantation to farmers.

Ambala (Alyansa ng mga Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita), one of the farmers’ unions in Hacienda Luisita, asked the Supreme Court to junk Hacienda Luisita Inc.’s appeal to overturn the land distribution ruling.

In its comment to the Supreme Court, Ambala said the appeal of the  management of Hacienda Luisita lacked merit and was an attempt to buy time pending the possible ouster of Chief Justice Renato Corona.

Hacienda Luisita, a sugar plantation in Tarlac province, is controlled by the family of President Benigno Aquino III.

“Clearly, the petitioner-movant is merely vying for time. It is waiting and hoping for some miracle to happen,” the comment said.

“Hopefully, even with the on-going intramurals involving the Chief Justice, the Honorable Court sees it fit to immediately resolve to deny the motion filed by the petitioner-movant, affirm the 22 November 2011 resolution, and order its immediate execution,” it added.

Corona, who was appointed to head the Supreme Court by former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who is now under house arrest for electoral sabotage, was charged for being biased for the Arroyo administration and amassing ill-gotten wealth and properties.

The embattled Chief Justice said the ouster campaign against him stemmed from the court’s decision to give the massive plantation to the farmers.

Late last year, the Court ruled 14-0 that the estate, which belonged to the Cojuangco family, should be distributed to 6,296 farmer-workers who have tilled the land for decades.

The Court also declared that the stock distribution option (SDO) exercised by the family was not in the spirit of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform law, which was enacted by the late President Corazon Aquino, the current president’s mother.

The nondistribution of Hacienda Luisita, the largest estate that exercised the SDO option under CARL, was a thorny issue for the late President and continues to hound her son today.