Corona welcomes SONA mention of judiciary's low budget

Supreme Court (SC) Chief Justice Renato Corona appreciates that President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy" Aquino III acknowledged the judiciary's budget problems in his State of the Nation Address (SONA). "I think it's a concern that everybody shares. I think the President is aware of the fact that courthouses were destroyed by Ondoy and Pepeng," Corona told GMA News and GMANews.TV on Wednesday. In an interview during the Asian Judges Symposium at the Asian Development Bank, Corona said Aquino is probably aware that courtrooms were destroyed by the strong typhoons and tropical storms that devastated the country last year. The chief justice also noted that only less than one percent of the national budget goes to the judiciary. "I think he [Aquino] realized that 0.72 percent of the budget is really atrociously low," said Corona. Corona said the judiciary lacks funds for the repair of the courthouses destroyed during last year's weather disturbances; the upgrading of the courts' electronic equipment, and the salaries of new magistrates. "The most obvious thing is the courthouses. We don't have the money to repair them. Court documents were also destroyed, inundated [because of the floods]. The computers break down; there are also salas that have to be filled," said Corona. The President's SONA last Monday said the National Food Authority's debts amounting to P171.6 billion pesos this year could have funded the judiciary's budget of P12.7 billion, among others. "Umabot na sa P171.6 billion ang utang ng NFA noong Mayo ng taong ito. Ang tinapon na ito, halos puwede na sanang pondohan ang mga sumusunod: Ang budget ng hudikatura na P12.7 billion pesos sa taong ito; ang Conditional Cash Transfers para sa susunod na taon, na nagkakahalaga ng P29.6 billion; ang lahat ng classroom na kailangan ng ating bansa na nagkakahalaga ng P130 billion," said the President. “The result is NFA’s current debt of 171.6 billion pesos. This money that was wasted could have funded the following: the budget of the entire judiciary, which is at 12.7 billion pesos this year; the Conditional Cash Transfers for the following year, which cost 29.6 billion pesos, and all the classrooms that our country needs, which cost 130 billion pesos," he said. "Kasuklam-suklam ang kalakarang ito. Pera na, naging bato pa (This way of doing things is revolting. Money was there only to be wasted)," he added. –VVP, GMANews.TV