AS A direct result of the supposed impeachment campaign against Chief Justice Puno, there has been a quiet, yet persistent clamor from various groups for the Chief to run as president in the 2010 presidential elections.

Many reasons are given for this call, such as the Chief’s integrity, his civic-mindedness, loyalty to law and order, seeming incorruptibility, call for morality and love and defense of human rights.

It is true that the Chief would make a seemingly great candidate for president. His biography would be a political operative’s dream come true. He has the background and fortitude to be a good president. His morality and love of the law would serve him in good stead as the chief executive.

But. And this is a big BUT. The Chief should NOT run. He is qualified, yes. He has all the markings of a good leader, true. But to run for president in 2010? I say a big resounding NO.

My reason for this is simple. To run for President in 2010 means that the Chief would have to resign from his position as Chief Justice. The law dictates that any appointive public official (meaning someone who is appointed to a government position, like a Justice of the Supreme Court) who runs for an elective position is considered resigned from his appointive office and must vacate it, starting on the day of the filing of his candidacy.

And if the Chief does resign, who would then have the power to choose the next Chief Justice? Our current President. That’s who.

If the President is placed in such a situation to appoint the next Chief Justice, fate would have seemingly conspired to allow her to circumvent a constitutional prohibition against appointments during an election period.

Chief Justice Puno, as mandated by the Constitution, retires when he turns 70 years of age on May 17, 2010. The elections will be held in May 2010, which means that when Chief Justice Puno retires, his seat in the Court must remain vacant, and the most Senior Associate Justice (in this case Justice Carpio) would then be acting Chief Justice. Remember, the Constitution prohibits any appointments during the election period.

So if the Chief were to resign in order to run for president, the current President would have gotten a free gift, because the prohibition on appointments during the election period would not apply. She can then appoint anyone she wants (and I am betting she doesn’t want Justice Carpio to be acting Chief or even the next Chief Justice, which could happen if another President gets to appoint the next Chief).

No wonder then there is supposedly a "strong clamor" for the chief justice to run for president. After all, who wouldn’t want the power to appoint the next Chief Justice? Loyalists to the administration are probably thinking, better that the current president gets to pick the next Chief, rather than the next president getting that power.

Which is why it is unlikely to be a coincidence that the President's party, Lakas, announced a few weeks ago that it was seriously considering drafting Puno as a candidate for president. It probably also isn’t a coincidence that so many "supporters" materialized when the attempt to impeach Puno met stiff opposition in the court of public opinion.

But then again, this is just speculation on my part.

Of course, the issue of Puno running may be moot. He has already stated that he won't run for president and he is happy where he is, as Chief Justice of the Philippines.

Let's hope that he isn't convinced otherwise.

(You can contact Kelvin at kelvinlesterlee@gmail.com or through his blog at www.kelvinlesterlee.wordpress.com)