SC to build more halls of justice after executive nod

In a bid to expedite trials and other judicial processes, the Supreme Court said the entire judiciary was looking forward to build more halls of justice across the country after getting necessary funds from the government.

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno said the high court was prioritizing the construction of courts in 2016, in addition to the continuous repair and rehabilitation of existing halls of justice.

“It has really been only now that the executive department has seen fit to entrust us money to build our own halls of justice. The local government units and the Department of Justice have undertaken the construction before,” Sereno said during the 3rd CJ Meets the Press conference on Thursday.

Sereno said the judiciary as an independent branch of government should be independent to construct courts for its operations.

“I am already content with the fact that we can build courts as efficiently as we promised we can,” Sereno said, adding that there was a “dire need” to reform existing projects.

But the country’s chief magistrate added that the judiciary’s needs were “much larger” than what the national budget had allocated.

“We are requesting the legislature to take a close second look,” she said.

Sereno also reiterated the Supreme Court’s plan to move to a new complex at Fort Bonifacio in Taguig City, adding that the bidding for the architecture and engineering design of the new Manila Hall of Justice had already been completed.

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“I think something clicked in the public mind—that our services became something that really must be funded, so we are getting the financial support that we need now,” she added. Yuji Vincent Gonzales/RC