Justice Secretary Leila de Lima: Out of the running? INQUIRER/Niño Jesus Orbeta
MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s chances to be on the shortlist of candidates for the Chief Justice post have become slimmer after the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) denied her motion Monday to summarily dismiss the disbarment cases filed against her.
In a resolution, the IBP board of governors denied De Lima’s motion and ordered the IBP investigating commissioner to conduct a formal investigation on the disbarment complaints against the DoJ chief.
“The IBP Board of Governors hereby resolves to disapprove and reverse the resolution and recommendation of the Investigating Commissioner for the summary dismissal, without formal investigation or further proceedings of the consolidated disbarment case against Leila De Lima. Accordingly, the Investigating Commissioner is directed to proceed with the required formal investigation of the disbarment case against respondent (De Lima) in accordance with the Rules and resolve them with dispatch,” the IBP board stated.
“The relief of summary dismissal without further investigation becomes unavailing because the Supreme Court, in referring the case to the IBP for investigation, is presumed to have already made a preliminary determination that there is basis to proceed with formal investigation. Otherwise, the Supreme Court would have summarily dismissed the case…,” it added.
The IBP board explained that the Supreme Court’s referral of the disbarment complaints to them was done after De Lima responded to the complaint.
“The action of the Supreme Court in referring to summarily dismiss the disbarment cases leaves no valid option for the IBP but to conduct the required investigation pursuant to cited jurisprudential rules,” it added.
One of the two complaints against De Lima was filed jointly by Ricardo Rivera and Fernando Perito, and the other one by Nephtali Aliposa. Both complaints revolved around De Lima’s alleged defiance of a Supreme Court temporary restraining order issued in November 2011 when she stopped former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her husband, Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo, from leaving the country.
De Lima sought a summary dismissal of the disbarment case filed against her.
She is in the running for the Chief Justice post. The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) gave her up to August 2, 2012, to submit a clearance that she no longer has a pending case.
Under the rules of the Judicial and Bar Council, 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.