Makabayan: `Warrant factory judge' unfit for Court of Appeals

Makabayan to Palace: ‘Warrant factory judge’ unfit for CA

/ 04:23 PM July 10, 2025

The Makabayan bloc in Congress opposes the appointment of Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert to the Court of Appeals.

The Makabayan bloc in Congress opposes the nomination of Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert to the Court of Appeals.

MANILA, Philippines — The Makabayan Coalition has opposed the nomination of a trial court judge to the Court of Appeals (CA) for allegedly being a “warrant factory judge” after she issued arrest orders in controversial cases against activists and progressive group members.

In a letter to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. dated July 9, Makabayan noted that between 2018 and 2020, Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert, as judge of the Regional Trial Court in Quezon City, issued arrest orders “without determining the existence of probable cause, and mere days after application.”

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Villavert’s Branch 89 issued a search warrant that authorized teams from the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to raid the Bayan Muna and Gabriela offices in Negros Occidental, where 57 individuals including 10 minors were arrested for allegedly participating in a firearms and explosives training.

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READ: Nasino: ‘No mother should be separated from her child’ 

“We write to express our strong opposition to the nomination and appointment of Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals, or for any higher position within the judiciary, now and in the future,” Makabayan said.

“As the Executive Judge of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Quezon City, Judge Villavert gained notoriety as the “warrant factory judge” because of her repeated issuance of arrest and search warrants that violated the laws, standards, and procedure enabling constitutional rights against illegal arrests and detention, unreasonable searches and seizures, and life, liberty, and security,” they added.

`Flawed and deficient’

Makabayan noted that it was Villavert’s order that led to the arrest of Reina Mae Nasino — the activist who was arrested for alleged illegal possession of firearms and explosives, but was eventually acquitted as the evidence presented by the prosecution was “flawed and deficient.”

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Nasino also gave birth to her daughter River while in detention, but she was not allowed to either go out on bail or have her daughter stay with her while in detention.  River eventually died just three months after her birth.

READ: Nasino: ‘No mother should be separated from her child’ 

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“She also issued baseless warrants of arrests against trade union organizers, and progressives from the women, urban poor, and other marginalized sectors, as well as people from the church and the media […] She authorized, on the strength of a fake informant and planted evidence, the arrest of Reina Mae Nasino and two of her fellow urban poor and labor organizers in October 2019,” Makabayan said.

“This inhumane act was condemned internationally given that Villavert and the PNP committed their violations of the law when Nasino was pregnant, forcing her to give birth to and nurse her firstborn while in jail, until she lost Baby River due to low birth weight, lack of prenatal care, and poor nutrition,” they added.

INQUIRER has already asked Malacañang about Makabayan’s letter, but it has not responded as of posting time.

`Human rights violation’

This, however, is not the first letter crafted to oppose Villavert’s nomination.  Last June 5, Bayan Muna party-list also called on the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) to disqualify Villavert from being promoted to higher judicial positions amid her track record of “violating human rights and her collusion with the Duterte administration’s crackdown on activists.”

In a statement, former Bayan Muna lawmaker Ferdinand Gaite expressed strong opposition against Villavert’s candidacy for positions such as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals (CA) or Associate Justice of the Sandiganbayan.

“We vehemently oppose Judge Villavert’s candidacy to positions such as Associate Justice of the Court of Appeals or Associate Justice of the Sandiganbayan.  Her track record of violating human rights and her collusion with the Duterte administration’s crackdown on activists make her unfit for any higher judicial position,” Gaite said.

According to Gaite, Villavert had a history of issuing several questionable search warrants which led to the arrest and filing of “trumped-up” charges against 76 activists.

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With reports from Nelson Jr. Caparas, INQUIRER.net trainee /mr

TAGS: Court of Appeals

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