CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (MindaNews/30 May) – Like most parts of the country, lawyers here are still reeling from the Corona impeachment circus hangover but most agree that the 20-3 verdict of the senator-judges was a sign that democracy is vibrant and alive in the country.
“Contrary to what others believed, the verdict of former CJ Renato Corona is a sign that our democracy is still much alive, whether one agrees or not with his conviction,” Free Legal Assistance Group lawyer Santiago “Bobby” Goking said.
Goking, who is also a member of the Union of People’s Lawyers in Mindanao, said the practice of genuine democracy that is the application of the rule of law must be true to all regardless of their class.
“I agree with Senator-Judge (Martin Aquilino) Pimentel that ‘what is good for Juan is good for Renato.’ This is true democracy and this is the majority’s implied reason of the impeachment court why it chose conviction,” he said.
Lawyer Jan Perry Eugenio, of the Alternative Law Group member-organization Balaod Mindanaw, concurs with Goking, saying the impeachment trial was “not meant to destroy the judiciary.”
“Our position has been very clear from the beginning. The impeachment initiative was not meant to destroy the judiciary. On the contrary, the proceedings were brought to precisely (strengthen) the judiciary as the last bulwark of justice. What we had yesterday was a clear manifestation that democratic processes work in this country,” Eugenio said.
However, city administrator Leon Gan, who is a lawyer by profession, said failure to disclose one’s assets and liabilities is not enough an offense for impeachment and that the complaint was “unverified” and “defective.”
“There was no due process to start with. The complaint was defective in substance even before it reached the Senate. Under the existing rules and jurisprudence, the complaint should have been verified. All those who affixed their signature did not have time to read and understand the entire complaint,” Gan said in an interview.
He added: “From the time the complaint reached Congress, there already was a legal issue. The final arbiter is the Supreme Court. A mere failure to declare one’s assets and liabilities can now be an impeachable offense? He who has not committed a sin cast the first stone.”
The documents used against Corona, Gan insisted, were without prior consent, ergo, inadmissible.
“Files and documents were gotten without the prior consent of the account holder. Under the rules of court, illegally obtained evidence are inadmissible,” he stressed.
For his part, City Councilor Edgar Cabanlas – who maintains a law firm in the city – said it is better to just move on and train our attention to back to the “pressing national and local problems.”
“The verdict has been handed down. Let us refocus our attention to the more pressing national and local problems. We should move on with our dreams for change,” Cabanlas said. (Cong B. Corrales / MindaNews)