Friday, August 01, 2008 Malilong: Not about justice and principles By Frank Malilong The Other Side
REGARDLESS of how the Court of Appeals resolves the row between some of its members, the institution has already been damaged. There had been accusations in the past of money influencing some decisions of the Court but since the accusers did not present evidence of the alleged wrongdoing, the general reaction was to dismiss them as the handiwork of a sour-grape who couldn’t accept the truth that the law and the facts did not favor him.
Everything becomes altogether different, however, when the claim is publicly made, even if only by innuendo, by no less than a senior member of the Court. To say that these accusations have shaken the people’s faith in the judiciary as an impartial and independent arbiter of conflicts is an understatement. I have tangled with a number of friends while trying to defend the integrity of the judicial branch. I can almost see the I-told-you-so look they’d be wearing in their faces when I meet them now.
The Court doesn’t only have to do something about this latest scandal; it has to do something drastic. Nothing less can appease the public much more restore their faith in our judicial system. Rex Rico, a friend who practices law in the capital, summed it up for us when he said that he was “disgusted” by the bickering. “It’s not about justice and principles,” he fumed in a text message that he sent early yesterday morning. I don’t have to repeat what Rex thinks it is; we all know.
The axe has to fall. Who gets hit, I leave it, to quote an all-too familiar phrase, to the sound discretion of the Court.
* * *
I have known Felipe “Eping” Velasquez since we were in college but I didn’t realize how his looks had hidden his age until he told me yesterday morning that his Abellana National School class of 1959, better known as the “Maharlika Group” will mark their golden anniversary in March next year.
To the few who do not know Eping, he is one of Cebu’s best lawyers although he is now better known as the husband of Ester, the president of the Cebu Normal University.
* * *
Also yesterday, I finally met the big boss of the Cebu City Sports Center right in the heart of his territory. Ricky Ballesteros is someone you’d find difficult to dislike and he promptly disarmed the lady walkers who gathered around him when they learned who he was.
He explained why the main entrance to the oval had to remain closed: to prevent hawkers from peddling their wares inside and to keep the users safe from thieves, who would have otherwise found it easy, as in the past, to enter and flee the scene, using the main gate. Anyway, he said, the gate is not locked so that when there is an emergency it can be easily opened.
I thanked Ricky for the noticeable improvement in the CCSC’s sanitary conditions while calling his attention to the need to enforce discipline among the users. Yesterday, we almost stepped on phlegm while doing our early morning exercise.
If the city doesn’t have enough funds to hire a security officer, I suggest that they deputize some of the CCSC’s clients as marshals. I nominate my friend, Ben Sun, to head the security volunteers’ group. Not only does Ben own a security agency, he also has boxing skills that we could put to use to rein in the recalcitrant.
