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Bernas opposes Arroyo appointment of next chief justice


A noted framer of the 1987 Constitution has cautioned the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) against submitting a shortlist of nominees for the chief justice post to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, saying it could lead to a violation in the Charter. In a forum last Friday, Fr. Joaquin Bernas said President Arroyo may construe a submission of the shortlist before or during the election ban on appointments as an indication that she can appoint the next chief justice. “If the JBC submits it to Gloria, implicitly the JBC is saying that yes you have the power. On the other hand, if the JBC refuses to submit then the JBC is implicitly saying ‘no, you don’t have the power.’ The JBC is in a very difficult position," Bernas said. Bernas also said it would be unconstitutional for President Arroyo to appoint outgoing Chief Justice Reynato Puno’s successor even without the endorsement of the JBC, the body that screens nominees to vacant judicial posts. Article VII, Section 15 of the 1987 Constitution prohibits presidents from making appointments 60 days before a national election. Puno, the only non-Arroyo appointee in the 15-member Supreme Court, is set to retire on May 17 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70. Bernas said President Arroyo should let her successor exercise the power to appoint the next chief justice in order not to divide the justices in light of the possibility that the issue will be brought to the Court. SC spokesman Jose Midas Marquez, meanwhile, maintained that it is very important not to allow a vacuum in the leadership of the high tribunal considering the proximity of the May 10 elections, noting it is the chief justice who leads the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) in resolving election-related issues. “It’s difficult to have no chief justice especially during critical times like now that we will be having a national election… You need a Court which is strong and credible during times like this, so having just an acting chief justice can pose a problem," he said. In Malacañang, Cabinet Secretary Silvestre Bello III insisted that the President can appoint the next chief justice because the position is not covered by the appointments ban. He said if the JBC submits its list of nominees to President Arroyo, she would be obliged under the Constitution to make her choice. The JBC has opened its nominations for Puno’s replacements. - KBK, GMANews.TV

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