Thursday, January 15, 2009 Van Vugt: Flowers to Justice Borja! By Arnold Van Vugt Commentary
SHAME to Justices Lantion, Lim, Pizzarro and Elbinias!
After almost one year sitting of on the case, the Court of Appeals finally came out with their decision: the Davao City ordinance that banned aerial spraying of chemicals in its banana plantations is 'invalid and unconstitutional.'
I couldn't believe my ears when I heard it. How, for heaven's sake, could a city ordinance that protects the people's health and the integrity of creation against the hazardous spraying of chemicals in the air, so that the banana company can produce more, be declared invalid and unconstitutional!
Our PRAISE goes to Judge Borja, for his dissenting opinion. He was the only one among the five justices who had the guts to stand up against the powerful banana company and his colleagues in court, to defend the rights of the poor farmers terribly affected by the damaging aerial chemical spraying of banana plantations in Davao City.
More so, do I consider Borja a hero and a true Christian, for as chief justice of the court, he was on the receiving end of all complaints and insults of the farmers while all the time he stood at their side in secret. He had to take the blame while the other judges were nowhere to be seen.
SHAME to these justices! They had the gall to dismiss the clear testimonies of the suffering Maas farmers. Pictures don't lie! Big and powerful companies do, if they have to protect their business interests, like our politicians lie if it is in their political interest. I wonder if the justices cared to take a look at those horrible pictures. They probably did not have the time. They needed all the time to look at the papers of the banana company and dig up some truth out of the pile of lies. They could not withstand the pressure (and the bribes?) of the company.
SHAME also to the local police for the forcible ejection of the farmers from the picket lines. They did not show any compassion for the farmers when they had just been told they had lost their case. Their two-month picket in front of the Court of Appeals had been to no avail. Can't they understand that in their anger and frustration, the farmers would rather die there than go back to their homes where they will eventually die from hunger and diseases?
The poor farmers have to go all the way to the Supreme Court in Manila to appeal the CA's decision. Where will they get the money to follow up their case in Manila? I hope that Chief Justice Renato Puno won't be impeached by that time. I am sure the farmers can expect at least a favorable decision from him after he made his famous crusade for justice to the poor and oppressed in our country. But he too may fall victim to the rotten system we are in.
I was told some time ago that Justice Borja was about to resign because he couldn't stand the pressure any longer.
Please, Mr. Borja, don't resign. We need judges like you and Puno to bring about the much-needed changes in our judicial system.
