‘I won’t join the NPA, the SIC met my condition’

Conditionally, I said in this section (May 24, 2012 issue of Leyte Samar Daily Express) that I would join the New People’s Army. Yes, I arrived at that decision, conditioned by the final turn of events on the trial of Renato Corona as impeached chief justice of the Philippine Supreme Court. I said I will join the NPA if the Senate Impeachment Court would believe Corona’s statements before that infamous walkout from his trial. If the SIC credited Corona’s personal defense testimonies and consequently acquitted him from the charge of betrayal of public trust or culpable violation of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, I would have left this present nationally democratic Philippine society and ran to the hills to join the rebels whom I had been supporting in various ways in the past (prior to and during the early years of the Marcosian martial law regime). That condition did not happen.

On May 29, the SIC convicted Corona, a final and unimpeachable, unassailable and unappealable act by a special constitutional court higher than the Supreme Court. By May 30 afternoon, the Supreme Court associate justices convened en banc (save for two who were on official speaking engagement invitations) with 63-year-old associate justice Antonio T. Carpio, being the most senior member of the highest court and conformably to that court’s internal procedures, presiding as ACTING CHIEF JUSTICE. With Renato C.Corona already convicted of his culpable guilt and effectively removed (a.k.a. out) as of May 30 (completed by the actual service and delivery of the conviction order and judgment by the Senate Impeachment Court), the newest Supreme Court leadership ordered that associate justices and judges make public their statements of assets and liabilities, not anymore just summaries thereof, replaced lawyer SC court administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez as spokesperson, and told all employees in co-terminus capacity with the deposed guilty chief justice to leave and vacate their posts. On May 31, the convicted Corona made public his statement that he would no longer appeal his case to the SC – what for when the SIC’s verdict was final, executory and cannot be appealed from, a contrary action to which would only be futile and an insanity, a distorted interpretation of reality. In less than 90 days afer his official visit to the United Kingdom, PNoy will be naming his personal choice for appointment as full-fledged chief justice, one who will not decide and interpret laws for his personal benefit nor that of his protectors and masters of which he should not have, for not even an appointing authority should be looked up to by a chief magistrate as someone to be indebted to. The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) will submit to him a list of nominees from which to make his choice.
Now, let’s look back at how the quondam senator-judges explained their GUILTY verdict on Corona. Let’s begin with that of senator judge Chiz Escudero’s:

“It is written…Do not judge lest you be judged, for the measure you measure with will be measured back to you. (Matthew 7:1-2)

 ”While I do not approve of the manner and way which the House of Representatives initiated, proceeded and handled this impeachment, when they filed the complaint for impeachment before the Senate, the House, in the exercise of its wisdom, determined that non-declaration in one’s SALN is an impeachable offense. Ibig sabihin nito, mula ngayon, pwedeng nang tanggalin sa pwesto ang punong mahistrado pati na rin ang pangulo at ikalawang pangulo at iba pang impeachable officers kapag meron silang di dineklara sa kanilang SALN.

 ”Matapos aminin ni Chief Justice Corona na mayroon siyang $2.4M at P80M na hindi niya dineklara sa kanyang SALN, naging simple na lamang po ang kailangan naming pagpasyahan… Ito po ay: HINDI NGA BA ITO KELANGAN IDEKLARA DAHIL SA R.A. 6426 o FCDU LAW? Kung sasang ayon kami sa posisyong ito ni Chief Justice Corona, dapat namin siyang ipawalang sala at kung hindi naman, ay dapat mag-gawad kami ng hatol laban sa kanya.

 ”Ikinalulungkot ko na di ko po masasang-ayunan ang posisyong ito ni Chief Justice Corona. . Para sa akin, maliwanag ang mga batas natin at di ito nagbabanggaan. Ang pinagbabawalan ng FCDU law na mag-release ng impormasyon ukol sa dollar deposits ay ANG MGA BANKO AT DI ANG DEPOSITOR. Samantala, ang KONSTITUSYON at R.A. 6713, pinag-uutos na ideklara ng lahat ng opisyal ng pamahalaan ang LAHAT NG KANILANG YAMAN AT PAGKAKAUTANG. Kung ayaw mo ito ideklara, eh di huwag kang tumakbo para sa, o tumanggap ng anumang, pwesto sa pamahalaan. Subalit kung ikaw ay nasa pamahalaan, kelangan mo itong ideklara.

“Dahil dito, mabigat man sa aking kalooban, kailangan kong mag-gawad ng hatol laban kay Chief Justice Corona.

“Maging ganoon pa man, nais ko pong batiin muli si Chief Justice Corona dahil, sa kasaysayan ng bansa, siya ang kauna-unahang opisyal ng pamahalaan na nag-execute ng waiver para buksan ang anumang deposito nya sa banko. Sana siya at ang kasong ito ang magsilbing hudyat ng isang bagong simula sa ating bansa. Isang bagong simula kung saan di na pwede ang dating gawi! Panahon na para itaas natin ang pamantayan ng mga naninilbihan sa pamahalaan! At dapat pantay nating ipatupad ito di lamang sa kanya kundi sa ating lahat!… Kahapon, i- sinumite ko sa Senado, pabor sa Ombudsman ang aking waiver upang ilakip sa aking SALN at hinihimok at hinahamon ko ang mga kasamahan ko sa Senado at sa Kongreso na gawin din ito at ipasa natin, sa lalong madaling panahon, ang ini-akda kong Senate Bill 107 na naglalayon na i-require ito sa lahat ng naninilbihan sa pamahalaan. Tulad ng sinabi ko sa aking pambungad na salita, ano man ang panukat na ginamit natin sa pag-husga, siya ring panukat na dapat nating gamitin sa ating mga sarili. Ika nga ni Cong. Farinas, kung di natin pinapalusot si Chief Justice Corona, wag din tayong magpa lusot!

“ Ito’y hinihiling ko para magkaroon ng saysay, kahulugan at positibong kinahinatnan ang kalbaryong dinaanan ni Chief Justice Corona, ng kanyang pamilya at ng ating bansa bunsod ng impeachment proceeding na ito.

“ Dalangin ko po na sana agad na magsimula ang paghilum ng pait, sugat at pagkakawatak-watak ng ating bansa. Sana naman, pagkatapos nito ay tama na! Let us move on and move forward. Pag-tuunan na natin ng pansin ang mahahalagang problema sa ating bansa na may kinalaman sa ating ekonomiya at paglagay ng pagkain sa bawat lamesa.

“ Ano man ang maging hatol ng hukumang ito, I wish you and your family well Mr. Chief Justice. Nawa’y gumaling kayo mula sa inyong karamdaman at patnubayan nawa kayo, at tayong lahat, ng Diyos.”

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‘YES’ from Youth In Action: For the first time this year, the 3-year old Youth In Action (YIA), one of a few independent youth organizations existing in Basey, Samar, will launch its simple but manageable development support programs or services that will indirectly help power up the town’s socio-economic engines via spiritual and moral rejuvenation. The thrust takes the form of a “Youth Empowerment Seminar” in the afternoon of June 9 (this coming Saturday). According to YIA prexy Marlou D. Palo, the seminar will center on the theme “Abante Kabataan Tungo sa Kaunlaran”. Among the topics chosen are Leadership, Role of the Youth in Community Development, and Moral and Spiritual Strengthening of the Youth. Various youth sectors have been invited to attend. YIA founder Michael U. Dela Torre said that the resource speakers are “champions in their respective fields”. Marlou is hopeful that the participation of the youths’ leaders will be “a great contribution in preparing the youths as future leaders or our community and country”. For more information, interested parties may contact Marlou and Michael at either of cellular phone numbers 09287202038 or 09461787873. By the way, the whole day last May 25, 2012, Marlou and Michael addressed barangay Cogon (Basey) and sitio Cambabang officials and opinion leaders led by punong barangay Clarita Quilitano during an orientation-training on Organic Farming and Core Group Formation organized by the Baktas Kabub’wason Rural Workers Association in cooperation with the municipal office of the Department of Agrarian Reform. At that same time, in a separate venue, Basey Irrigation Project institutional development personnel conducted a pre-membership seminar for prospective rice land irrigators from such villages as Cogon, Bulao and Cancaiyas, in preparation for the irrigation service to be provided by the National Irrigation Administration under the current administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino.

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‘As social practice continues, things that give rise to man’s sense perceptions and impressions in the course of his practice are repeated many times; then a sudden change (leap) takes place in the brain in the process of cognition, and concepts are formed. Concepts are no longer the phenomena, the separate aspects and the external relations of things; they grasp the essence, the totality and the internal relations of things. Between concepts and sense perceptions there is not only a quantitative but also a qualitative difference. Proceeding further, by means of judgement and inference one is able to draw logical conclusions. The expression in San Kuo Yen Yi, “knit the brows and a stratagem comes to mind”, or in everyday language, “let me think it over”, refers to man’s use of concepts in the brain to form judgements and inferences. This is the second stage of cognition. …’ – Mao Tse Tung [Note: San Kuo Yen Yi (Tales of the Three Kingdoms) is a famous Chinese historical nova by Lo Kuan-chung (late 14th and early 15th century).]

By: Chito Dela Torre

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