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ONE good that comes from the Judiciary, Executive and
Legislative Advisory Consultative Council
(Jelac) is that the Supreme Court gets the full attention of
Congress for the monies, judges and personnel badly needed by the
courts.
Malacañang last year invited the
Supreme Court to join the Legislative Executive Development Advisory
Council (Ledac) whose main function is to prepare, review and
approve the legislative program of the national government.
The Palace said that expanded
membership would strengthen consultations among the three branches
of government and grant the judiciary a role in decision making.
Emphasis on law
Chief Justice Reynato Puno,
fearing that membership would compromise the Supreme Court’s
independence, said he would give the matter some thought.
The other day, the chief justice
announced the court had opted for membership in a new body to be
called the Judiciary, Executive and Legislative Advisory
Consultative Council. Jelac runs parallel to Ledac but with a
different mandate. Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said Jelac aims to
strengthen the rule of law and the role of the judiciary. A Palace
statement added that the three branches under the council shall
deliberate on matters “affecting the primacy of justice.”
The emphasis on law tells us that
a chief function of the council is to strengthen the
judiciary and to boost the power of the courts for the national
good.
World-class judiciary
This is significant because Chief
Justice Puno has been complaining about the scant resources granted
his court and the lower courts. One time he said that while
Filipinos pine for a world-class judiciary, the powers-that-be have
been miserly in allocating generous funds.
Justices, judges and court
personnel are campaigning for higher pay commensurate to their work.
Hundreds of salas across the country are not served by judges. The
huge vacancies partly explain the slow delivery of justice and
congested jails.
From Sen. Francis Pangilinan, who
suggested the council last year, we learned that the budget of the
judiciary represents a measly 0.80 percent of the national budget,
an insult on a co-equal and vital branch of government.
Henceforth, the court
administrators will have the full attention of the Office of the
President, the Senate and the House of Representatives. They would
have a more reasonable forum—other than the House budget
hearings—for defending their budgets.
Checks and balances
Other important concerns, such as
security of tenure, the safety of justices and judges, filling of
new positions and vacancies and creating new services, will
henceforth receive greater attention.
Explaining his decision, Chief
Justice Puno said he had looked into the structure of the council,
its ends and purposes and “it’s quite clear it shall operate
within the constraints and context of the Constitution, meaning the
doctrine of separation of powers, and the doctrine of checks and
balances.”
Last year, we counseled against
the Court’s membership in the old Ledac. The main task of that
group was to prepare a legislative program and to identify and push
priority bills. We said the Court had no business taking part in
that work.
As member, the Court has to help
shape the legislative agenda and identify priority
measures. That task belongs to the people who make the law and to
those who enforce it. The High Court comes into the picture when it
interprets a law or tests its constitutional moorings.
Independence at stake
Jelac will not duplicate the
function of the legislative-executive council. Just the same,
membership puts the independence of the court under a cloud. Even if
the justices believe their integrity is not compromised, perceptions
in this country matter. Justices cannot be seen associating with
lawmakers and executive bureaucrats. One former chief justice was
criticized for active party going in the company of the elite.
The agenda of Jelac is
open-ended, but matters “in the national interest” would be
discussed. This covers a wide range of subjects, from the
Constitution, the political system, population policy, national
security and foreign relations. The forum gives the two other
branches a chance to pick the mind of the justices and
to solicit support for an important policy or program.
The coming together of the three
branches under a tripartite council comes at a time when the Puno-led
chamber has become a singular national force on a scale
unprecedented in history. Apart from convening the national
conference on kidnappings and extrajudicial killings, the Court has
initiated new measures to protect human rights, such as the writ of
amparo and the habeas data. It has widened the duties of the lower
courts to include the care of the environment.
Whether membership in the Jelac
will affect the court’s activism remains to be seen. We hope the
Chief Justice will win support not only for his budget and parochial
priorities, but also for lasting long-term institutional reforms in
the system of justice and the rule of law.
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