Chief Justice Sereno will zip her mouth to Duterte’s fire.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno will now zip her mouth with regards the Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s firing words on her last Tuesday.
SC spokesman Atty. Theodore Te said that the presidenr has already expressed his point and the chief justice does not want to add on it anymore.
“Many things have been said, the chief justice sees no need to add to what are being said”.
Te is not sure for now if Sereno will bring-up the issue in the en banc session of the Supreme Court.
On Tuesday, President Duterte gave Chief Justice Sereno a lecture after she expressed her concern on making judges linked to illegal drug trade in the country surrender to PNP Chief Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa.
Duterte has already clarified that it was the involved policemen who were orderred to surrender to Bato while the named and shamed judges were suggested to go to the Supreme Court to explain.
Duterte then attacked Sereno as someone appointed by the previous administration which has done nothing to address the worsening problem on illegal drugs and crimes related to it.
San Beda College of Law Dean Father Ranhillo Aquino lauded the chief justice’s decision to keep her silence and not answer back to the president anymore.
Aquino believes that Duterte’s firing words to Sereno was just because of the his temper. He added that nobody wants the country to experience constitutional crisis because of the conflict between the two leaders of the country.
On the other hand, Malabon Rep. Ricky Sandoval pushes for the revival of the Judicial Executive Legislative Advisory and Consulattive Council (JELACC).
Sandoval sees that the reconvening of the JELACC can end the conflict between Duterte and Sereno.
It was 2008 when the council was created through a memorandum agreement issued under the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo regime.