AFTER almost four months of boycotting the flag-raising ceremony, senior justices of the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday attended this weekly rite after confirming that Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno was still out of the country.

Employees of the High Tribunal cheered the justices upon seeing them at the flag ceremony for the first time since Sereno assumed her post on August 24. They even sang Christmas carols to manifest their warm reception of and support for the senior justices.

Court insiders tagged as the “Dream Team” the senior justices who are now fighting Sereno and her policies, particularly her unilateral issuance of a resolution without the imprimatur of the court en banc. These justices had skipped the flag rites for four months allegedly because they feel irritated to see Sereno there.

Except number two most senior, Justice Presbitero Velasco Jr. who is now in the United States, Justices Antonio Carpio, Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Arturo Brion, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin and Martin Villarama, were present at the flag rites.

Justice Peralta, who arrived minutes before the flag-raising rites started, waived his hand at the crowd, which responded with cheers.

Sereno went to Washington D.C. on Friday along with Justices Velasco, Mariano del Castillo and Estela Perlas-Bernabe to pay a courtesy call on US Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. She is expected to return today.

“The senior justices attended the flag raising for the first time because Sereno is not present.

The moment she returns, nobody will attend again,” a High Court justice said.

Meanwhile, former SC chief justice Reynato Puno on Monday said that the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) should continue to require all applicants for the bench to undergo psychological and psychiatric test.

He said that those who will not pass the test should not be appointed.

The judicial committee is planning to abolish the psychological test to speed up the selection process. Sereno, who reportedly failed the test during the selection process, supports its abolition.

Puno said that although the test might not be conclusive, it could serve as a window on the psychological capacity of an individual who wants to join the judiciary.

“This [psychological and psychiatric test] is a very important method in looking into the capability of a person to be fair and impartial judge or a justice,” the former chief justice said in an interview over ANC.

The JBC psychological test has a ranking system from one to five, with five being the lowest. Sereno, during the selection process for the next chief justice, reportedly got four in the test, one of the lowest among the nominees.

Based on the test results which was published earlier by The Manila Times, Sereno was found to be: “dramatic and emotional; she appears energetic and all smiles and agreeable, but with religious preoccupation in almost all significant aspects of her life.

“She projects a happy mood but has depressive markers too. There is a strong tendency to make decisions based on current mood thus, outcome is highly subjective and self-righteous,” the report stated.

Brion had asked for the publication of the test results but the judicial committee and Sereno opposed it.

With a report from Jefferson Antiporda