Sereno: Constitution must be properly followed

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. INQUIRER / Richard A. Reyes

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Wednesday said that the Constitution must be properly followed.

In her speech at the National Women’s Month forum at St. Scholastica’s College in Manila, Sereno said the Constitution has already provided means to exact transparency and accountability.

Sereno is currently on an indefinite leave from the Supreme Court in preparation for her looming impeachment trial.

A petition for quo warranto was filed against her by the executive through Solicitor General Jose Calida asking the high court to remove her from her post for being unqualified.

Under the Constitution, a Chief Justice is among the officials who can only be removed by impeachment proceedings.

Impeachment proponents, however, also sought the quo warranto proceeding to shortcut Sereno’s ouster. They argued that since the Chief Justice failed to submit the complete requirements when applying for the top magistrate’s posts, she is illegally occupying the position.

“The Constitution in a sense is quite substantial in the matter of transparency and accountability and we do not have to re-invent the wheel, at least in this area,” Sereno said.

“The time will come when our people will realize that impromptu, extemporized, unprepared, unthought out plans of action, that run contrary to the structured way the Constitution designed accountability harms our nation’s long term future,” Sereno said. /je