MAGANES: Is Coronas’ Impeachment for Real?

It seems that this early, we are already aware of the outcome of the impeachment trial of Supreme Court’s Chief Justice Renato Corona. I could sense a conviction before the Senate acting as an impeachment court which is presided over by Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile. On its third day of trial, I was glued to the television set on ABS-CBN’s Studio 23 and did not miss any single question posed by the House panel prosecution, the defense team of Chief Justice Corona led by former Justice Serafin Cuevas and the senator-judges.

The Clerk of Court of the high tribunal was on the witness seat and has to produce the Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth of Justice Corona when he was still an associate justice of the Court until he became the chief magistrate. Lawyer Enriquita Vidal- the clerk of court, was adamant against submitting the SALNs of Justice Corona to the Senate-Court invoking that she has to seek first the permission f the Supreme Court’s Justices. The prosecution panel appeared to be helpless at the start. They could not persuade Vidal to submit the SALNs in her possession. But pronto! Senator Franklin Drilon acting as senator-prosecutor has ultimately persuaded Vidal to submit the SALNs of Justice Corona. Senator Joker Arroyo’s pleading that the Senate Court must give Vidal sufficient time to submit the required documents after the justices have already given her the approval.

Senator Arroyo’s voice was not heard when he invoked that the Senate could not afford to have a clash with the Supreme Court being a co-equal body. It was Senator Drilon’s voice that was given weight by the senate-judges cum part of the prosecution panel. I was dismayed to see the senator-judges acting like prosecutors. They are there to hear supposedly the impeachment complaint that is composed of eight articles of impeachment. If this will be the way the impeachment trial will be carried out in the next hearings which I supposed to be for six months, then Chief Justice Corona will not get the justice he is craving for before the eyes of the Filipino people.

The Senate Court’s saving grace is Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile. With his age, the way he handles the impeachment trial showed how wisdom has really grown in his persona. He was a picture of a real court justice with his Solomonic rulings for and against the pleadings of the defense team and the prosecution panel.

Many of the senator-judges just contented themselves with listening. They never spoke any word yet in the impeachment hearing. Maybe, they are still trying to weigh things, to discern the real sentiments of the people and examining their consciences whether or not to convict Corona or not. Hey! I missed Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago. Should she participated actively, I supposed the pace of the impeachment hearing in its four days was even more exciting .

On the defense team, Justice Serafin Cuevas is a personality to behold. He has all the legal wisdom on his sleeves, that, to the consternation of the house prosecution, he lectured them, as if they were in a law school, on the proper handling of evidences. Iloilo Rep. Neil Tupaz was perceived as a second-rate lawyer before the eyes of the public. His other team members could not really decipher what legal moves they are going to take to appear that they control the impeachment trial.

We are all aware that impeachment proceeding is a political exercise. The impeached person, if convicted, will not be incarcerated but will be meted the penalty of being ousted from the public office and perpetual disqualification to hold public position in any capacity. That is the irony of impeachment proceedings. The senator-judges will decide not based on jurisprudence but on their consciences and the most persuaded by their party affiliations and closeness to the president- and in Corona’s case President PNoy.

Justice Corona is crying out for justice! The public is crying out for truth! But what truth are we going ferret out when all we witnessed are virtual grandstanding by those people with political interests in the future.

We the public is expected to participate in this political exercise- the third impeachment case that prospers before us. The first was against then President Joseph Estrada, the second was against Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez and the third against chief magistrate Renato Corona. This is a learning process to know and be aware if democracy really works in this country. This is a chance to see the real characters of our public officials whom we elected into office. This is the time for us to think and re-think about the future of this country.

But, it’s better said than done. Let’s just hope for the best of our country.

(For comments, email me at emperorvirgil@yahoo.com)