Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago wants to abolish the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) because she thinks it has failed to fulfill its mandate.
In an interview after her speech at the Credit Manage-ment Association of the Philippines, the senator ex-pressed dissatisfaction with the JBC which is responsible for creat-ing a shortlist of nominees for the highest position in the Supreme Court vacated by former Chief Justice Renato Corona.
Santiago noted that the JBC was created to prevent politics from penetrating the high court which she said has not been prevented. Now that the process has been politicized, “I think they should turn that power to the Senate as they do in the United States,” the senator stressed.
“So I think we have experimented enough with the JBC that we have to abolish it in the Constitution,” Santiago added.
She also lamented the lack of qualifications of some of the nominees, insisting that the leadership “should always be intellectual in nature.”
Meanwhile, a formal position has been issued by the JBC turning down questions raised by former Solicitor General Frank Chavez on the legality of the collegial body’s composition.
“We decided to adopt the current practice. We are inclined to continue with the practice of having eight members with one voting power each unless directed otherwise by the court,” ex-officio member lawyer Jose Mejia told reporters.
He explained that the issue on the number of membership of the constitutional council tasked to vet nominees to judicial posts was deliberated on even before it was raised by Chavez.
“What we know is that it was brought up as an issue during the time of Chief Justice (Hilario) Davide (Jr.) and of course it (eight-member composition) was adopted during that time. For our part, we’re just following what was already being practiced,” Mejia stressed.
He admitted that this issue – once raised before and acted upon by the high court – could affect their ongoing selection process for the chief justice post.
Mejia also noted that a possible temporary restraining order from the SC would delay the process, so he said it would be better not to file the petition anymore.
In a three-page letter to the council, Chavez sought clarification as to why the Senate and
Congress has separate representatives in the Council when Section 8 (1) of Article VIII of the Constitution states there should only be “a representative of the Congress.”
Relatedly, Sen. Franklin Drilon said he will not accept his nomination to the chief justice post, a position he will keep for only three years which is even less than his stint in the upper chamber if chosen by President Aquino.
“I have been in the Executive and legislative branches... I’m already 67, do I still need to seek another job? Just the same, it’s an honor. I thank those who nominated me. (But) I intend to finish my term in the Senate,” he told a news forum at the Senate.
Drilon, who returned to the Senate in the 2010 elections, pointed out that “by the time I finish my term, I will have already reached 71 years old.”
“So that disqualifies me. I like my work at the Senate. I can be of better service to the country as a senator,” he said.
What Drilon failed to mention was that he’s still eligible to seek reelection in 2016 for another six years of stay in the upper chamber.
The senator, however, admitted that it is every lawyer’s dream to be not only a chief justice but even as a justice of the high tribunal.
“That is a lawyer’s dream. But I intend to finish my term in the Senate. I like my work in the Senate. I can be of better service to the country as a senator,” he said. Benjamin B. Pulta and Ange M. Rosales