SC defers action on Senate plea
By Leila Salaverria, Inquirer Northern Luzon
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:49:00 04/16/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- The Supreme Court has deferred action on the Senate’s motion for reconsideration on the high tribunal’s decision to uphold the President’s claim of executive privilege on three questions regarding the government’s controversial broadband deal with China.
The high court also resolved to require Romulo Neri, former director general of the National Economic and Development Authority, as well as the Office of the Solicitor General, which represents the government, to comment on the pleading.
The comments should be filed within 10 days, after which the Senate would be asked to reply within another 10 days, the tribunal said Tuesday in a statement
The justices are in Baguio City for the summer session.
The Senate, in its motion for reconsideration, warned that the nation was on the road to “autocracy” unless the Supreme Court reversed its March 25 ruling on executive privilege, upholding the right of Neri to refuse to answer questions.
The ruling has been criticized by columnists and legal experts, including former Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban who called on the magistrates to overturn their ruling.
The tribunal, in a statement, also said it denied the two motions seeking the inhibition of Justices Conchita Carpio-Morales, Adolfo Azcuna, Consuelo Ynares-Santiago and Antonio Carpio, who were among those who had dissented in the executive privilege decision.
The motion against Morales and Azcuna was filed by Alexander Villacorta, who had sought to intervene in the case but was rebuffed.
Lawyer Antonio Ballena, on the other hand, asked Santiago and Carpio to inhibit themselves from the case.
According to earlier reports, Ballena wanted Santiago and Carpio to recuse themselves from the case because they were appointed to the high court by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Ballena also allegedly said that Santiago’s nephew had been appointed by the President to the Laguna Lake Development Authority, while Carpio used to be a partner in the Villaraza, Cruz, Marcelo and Angangco law office, the former law firm of the First Family.
Members of the militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), the Cordillera Peoples Alliance and church leaders gathered Tuesday at the tribunal’s summer compound in Baguio.
Renato Reyes Jr., Bayan secretary general, gave a copy of an open letter addressed to the justices to court personnel.
In their open letter, they asked for the reversal of the high court’s ruling in the Neri case, saying that executive privilege was subordinate to the higher values of transparency and accountability, except when national security was involved.
“Executive privilege must not be conveniently cited either to shield a sitting Chief Executive from any accountability for anomalous deals or to obstruct inquiries and measures that would prevent questionable executive agreements in the future,” the letter said.
“Such abuse of the privilege is contrary to Article XI, Section 1 of the Philippine Constitution, which states that public office is a public trust and public officers and employees must at all times be accountable to the people,” it said.
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