New Ombudsman: Aquino has no specific instructions

No instructions. Just remain independent. This was the answer of newly-appointed Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales when asked regarding President Benigno Aquino III's marching order to her. Interviewed after Aquino’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) where the President announced her appointment, Morales, a retired Supreme Court justice, said she would always go by the evidence when deciding on cases that will be lodged before her office. "No instructions. They have told me that I should remain independent as I told them I should go by the evidence because you cannot just recklessly file a case without evaluating the evidence," Morales said. Morales said she is not afraid to file cases against former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo if the evidence warrants it. "Why should I? I am never scared of anyone," she said. “If the evidence is found to merit probable cause then we file the case." Morales, however, withheld judgment on her predecessor, Merceditas Gutierrez, who resigned last May days before she was expected to face an impeachment trial at the Senate for allegedly betrayal of public trust. "I don’t like to accuse Merci (Gutierrez’s nickname). She is my friend but I will see to it if a case is indeed meritorious then I will file. You know you just cannot slow down cases just because you think you will be hurting someone," she said. Morales said she did not believe the text messages she had been receiving about her appointment until Monday when Aquino announced it during his SONA. "I always get texts everyday, every hour but to me it has always been false alarm. I was invited to attend [here]. My staff advised me that they received the appointment, which was coursed through the Chief Justice," she said. — KBK, GMA News