Sereno: Judiciary preparing for challenges, questions come election season

The influx of cases before the courts as election season nears is a “trend” which the judiciary has to be ready for in order to provide “the best possible quality of service in the form of justice,” Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno said Thursday during the sidelines of the Supreme Court’s 114th Anniversary.

Sereno said the conduct of the 2016 polls is a “major test which will determine whether our country’s democratic institutions will remain strong.” The high court Chief said the 2016 elections poses major challenges because the scheduled synchronized national and local elections will entail massive preparations. “Hindi biro ang mag-launch ng national elections sa atin; I think everyone should be aware of the challenges that are ahead of us. Maraming legal questions na haharap sa atin kaya kailangan ‘yung ating will nagkakaisa that we provide the best possible quality of service in the form of justice to our people. (Launching national elections here is no joke; I think everyone should be aware of the challenges that are ahead of us. We are going to face many legal questions so we need to be united that we provide the best possible quality of service in the form of justice to our people.) “Many cases, of course. Wala na ‘yan, trend na ‘yan talaga (it’s nothing, it’s already a trend), it’s given. Ang job sa amin ngayon (our job now) is to manage our time how to make sure that we can deliver all these thoughtful decisions in the appropriate time,” Sereno said. “We are also very much aware of our role come election time. It’s time we prepare,” she added. Sereno assured that the courts are doing a “systemic review” of processes and procedures to be able to respond to the call of the times. “Ang intention natin (our intention) is to make sure that all those who believe in the rule of law should be united in [its] pursuit,” Sereno said. IDL