Judicial system at the crossroads

RECENT events have brought into focus the problems of the country's judicial system and the legal processes that serve as the lifeblood of this branch of government. This scrutiny is bound to happen in view of the fact that the men and women who compose the bench cannot be divorced from the institution proper, that they co-exist in a symbiotic mode, and that the behavior of its members and the institution they represent are not mutually exclusive of the other.

Claims of a now politicized judiciary not only expose the theory of an independent and impartial institution but also question the integrity of its individual members. The blindfold Lady Justice, so it seems, may not really be that insulated from the influence of utang na loob and other corrupting practical enticements of politics and power.

But this is not to say that the source of such accusations, former President Joseph Estrada, is correct, and that the barrage of tantrums he directs against the very institution he once swore to protect are justified. He appears to be trying to move his personal battles from the courts into the realm of politics --- a development that sets a dangerous precedent that can undermine the people's trust in our courts.

However, as evidenced by the past actions of some justices and judges, the thin divide between politics and the judicial system has actually been breached, as when the late former Supreme Court chief justice Marcelo Fernan sought (but lost) the vice presidency in 1992. Subsequently, there were reports of TROs (Temporary Restraining Orders) being issued by the courts for alleged monetary or kinship considerations. Because judges and justices are appointed by the President, their sense of gratitude could influence their decisions, one way or another. And as the judiciary, like other institutions, is not really free of rotten eggs, its integrity could doubtless be flawed.

Accusations against current Chief Justice Hilario Davide's alleged improprieties must be answered head on. Did he or did he not meet business tycoon Lucio Tan, on the latter's invitation in an exclusive hotel, and in the presence of the former President? If so, was the meeting proper or improper, considering that Mr. Tan has a P26-billion pending tax evasion case before the Supreme Court? How true is the claim that Davide and two other Supreme Court justices went to and conferred with the highly politicized Prince of the Church, Jaime Cardinal Sin, days before the Supreme Court released its ruling on the question of the constitutionality of the Plunder Law Estrada filed before the court? If so, has the decision been influenced, one way or another, by Mr. Sin --- a known and unabashed critic of the former President? Likewise, how true are the reports of Davide meeting local political leaders, in the guise of consulting local judges, such as the reported meeting he had at the sprawling Hacienda Luisita with former president Cory Aquino and the whole Cojuangco clan?

To clear the air relative to claims that Justice Davide is harboring a presidential bid in 2004 --- a virtual repeat of Justice Fernan's act in 1992 --- surely these questions need to be answered. Some senators and other congressional leaders are now demanding for Davide's resignation, to avert what they claim to be the possible use of the judicial system as a springboard for his alleged political ambitions.

Thus, the die is cast for the Davide court to save itself from the erosion of trust in its integrity, independence and impartiality. One man alone, even if he is its chief, should not be allowed to bring down the whole judicial system into uncertainty, and possible collapse. *

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