“I will not bow to the powers that be.”
This was the defiant declaration of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno in a speech she delivered at an Araw ng Kagitingan event organized by the Movement Against Tyranny on Monday.
Sereno led the honorees of the event, citing her courage and commitment in fighting for the independence of the judiciary.
In her speech, Sereno said there are people close to her advising her to “just bow temporarily” to stop any actions that will be initiated against her.
“I cannot [because] I must retain the ability to look at every citizen in the eye and say fight on with courage, hang on to your principles, never yield, never give up,” Sereno said.
Sereno has been at odds with President Rodrigo Duterte since she wrote him a letter after he publicly identified judges with alleged ties in the illegal drug trade.
The Chief Justice, in previous speeches, also advocated human rights and has spoken against martial law.
Sereno said she has already accepted the fact that the impeachment complaint against her – although without basis, she said – will be transmitted to the Senate for trial.
She said she will not give in to “bullying.”
“We are not destined to slavery but to freedom. What is evil, we denounce; what is good, we affirm,” she said. /kga