Critics, especially veterans of the previous administration of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, say the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona appears to be a consolidation of power by President Benigno Aquino III that will weaken the judiciary, legislature and Constitution.
“I see this (impeachment trial) not as an effort to improve governance but as a crackdown on the opposition,” said former Sen. Richard J. Gordon, who served as secretary of tourism under Arroyo and ran against Mr. Aquino in the last presidential election.
“If you want to improve governance, you can go after the police and the judges who are taking bribes. This is business as usual, going after political enemies,” Gordon added.
But some analysts say Corona’s impeachment trial, which is expected to rivet the country for months, is part of an attempt to root out corruption that Mr. Aquino says flourished during the administration of Arroyo, who is now a Pampanga representative.
“During his campaign, he (Mr. Aquino) made promises about going after corruption and election fraud,” said Ramon C. Casiple, executive director of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform. “People can see that he is doing something about it. That is why he receives high popularity ratings.”
The Aquino administration took what it called a major step against corruption last Nov. 18, when Arroyo was arrested on charges of tampering with the results of Senate elections in 2007. If convicted, she faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. Last December, Arroyo and her husband were charged with corruption related to the NBN-ZTE scandal.
Close to Corona
Gloria Arroyo is close to Corona, who served as her chief of staff before she appointed him to the Supreme Court in April 2002. Two days after Mr. Aquino won the May 2010 presidential election, Arroyo appointed Corona as Chief Justice, a move that Mr. Aquino and his supporters insist was intended to derail efforts to bring Arroyo to justice.
If Arroyo is convicted, the Chief Justice could be instrumental in having those verdicts overturned if they reach the Supreme Court. The impeachment allegations against Corona include corruption and bias in rulings favoring Arroyo.
“Corona’s and Arroyo’s fates are intricately linked,” a columnist, Conrado de Quiros, wrote in the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
He added that Corona was “the one person to assure” that Arroyo “would not be prosecuted, the one person to open a crack for a possible comeback, the one person to assure that, as in her time, the law can exist independently of justice and be used to enforce the culture of impunity.”
Questionable tactics
Ferdinand Topacio, a lawyer representing the Arroyo couple in the corruption case, accused Mr. Aquino of resorting to questionable tactics that would have long-term negative implications.
“If you are removing the Chief Justice so you can convict (Arroyo), that is a shortsighted view of our system and our Constitution,” he said. “This damages our Constitution.”
Gordon echoed concerns that the impeachment proceedings might bring unintended consequences, particularly from the military, which had repeatedly sought to take over the government in the past three decades.
“I am not against President Aquino,” he said. “But he is not respecting the judiciary, and I don’t want these principles of separation of powers destroyed. He is also in danger of encouraging the coup plotters in the military because they see that he is not following the law.”
Checks and balances
The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), which counsels victims of human rights abuses, said the impeachment trial should preserve and strengthen the system of checks and balances in a democratic system.
“While it is the Chief Justice on the dock, the independence, credibility and integrity of our institutions will all be put to the test in this trial,” NUPL secretary general Edre Olalia said in a statement.
“It (impeachment trial) will not serve its purpose if the result would be a judiciary that is subservient to the dictates of the other branches of government,” Olalia added.
Casiple ruled out a weakening of the judiciary, constitutional standoff or return to a dictatorship if the Senate handled properly the impeachment trial.
“It (impeachment trial) may make for a better judicial institution by serving as a springboard for reforms in the administration of justice. Or, it may bamboozle the courts and undermine the system of supposed checks and balances and be the opening to monopoly of power,” he said.
Florin T. Hilbay, a constitutional scholar at the University of the Philippines, predicted that the live telecast of the impeachment hearings would increase Mr. Aquino’s popularity by showing citizens that the President was taking action he promised.
“I don’t think these proceedings will have a long-term damaging effect” on the Constitution, Hilbay said. “I think people will be more amused than personally affected. People enjoy the drama.” Reports from New York Times News Service and Jerome Aning