Colmenares: No president should be allowed to attack the judiciary

MANILA, Philippines — Bayan Muna chairperson and opposition senatorial candidate Neri Colmenares said Friday Filipinos must ensure that no future president shall attack the judiciary to keep its independence.

“Para sa akin, ang isang magagawa natin diyan not becoming a senator,” Colmenares said when asked about “how to get judicial independence in a broken system.”

“It’s by the Filipino themselves that no future president shall have the gall to threaten and attack the judiciary because that infringes not only their independence but the entire justice system as well. Wala na pong Duterte in the future dapat (There should be no more Duterte in the future),” he said.

Colmenares made the statement during a town hall meeting with lawyer-senatorial bets at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP).

The forum was organized by the IBP, the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), the Philippine Bar Association, and the Association of Law Students of the Philippines.

Other senatorial bets in attendance were Ernesto Arellano and Sonny Matula of Labor Win, Chel Diokno and Erin Tañada of Otso Diretso, and independent candidate Joan Sheelah Nalliw. /ee