Court asked to suspend inordinate delay doctrine

The Office of the Ombudsman has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to order the Sandiganbayan to suspend the application of the inordinate delay doctrine that the anti-graft court had used in junking several graft complaints.

“The core issue presented in the instant petition is how the legal concept of ‘inordinate delay’ should be operationalized vis-à-vis the constitutional admonition that ‘[a]ll persons shall have the right to a speedy disposition of their cases before all judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative bodies.’ While it is well-established in jurisprudence that criminal cases may be dismissed on the ground of denial of the accused’s right to speedy trial, the concept of ‘inordinate delay’ that amounts to a violation of the said right has eluded exact definition,” the Ombudsman said.