De Lima wants speedy resolution of disbarment case

Justice Secretary Leila De Lima. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila De Lima will ask the Supreme Court and the Office of the Ombudsman to immediately resolve the cases filed against her.

De Lima is one of the 22 candidates for the Chief Justice post. She is facing a disbarment complaint along with Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda. It was already referred to the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

Private lawyer Agustin Sundiam asked the high court to take disciplinary action against De Lima and Lacierda for their utterances and remarks on national television where they called Chief Justice Renato Corona a “lawless tyrant.”

De Lima is also facing graft and corruption case for deporting 14 Taiwanese nationals to China last year.

Under the JBC Rules particularly Rule 4 Section 5, those disqualified from being nominated or appointed to any judicial, Ombudsman or deputy ombudsman position include: 1. those with pending criminal or regular administrative cases; 2. those with pending criminal cases in foreign courts or tribunals; 3, those who have been convicted in any criminal case or in an administrative case where the penalty imposed is at least a fine of more than P10,000 unless he has been grated judicial clemency.

“I am confronting these complaints that is why I have filed my comments [on the complaint] but it is not within my control when they will resolve these cases,” De Lima told reporters Monday.

“I will do the public interview, I will appeal to them (Judicial and Bar Council). I will tell them what are the nature of these complaints, that it’s not my fault. I am only doing my mandate that is why I have been so vulnerable to harassment cases,” she said.

The JBC public interview will begin on July 24.