By Perfecto T. Raymundo
MANILA, Jan. 22 (PNA) — The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday defended the Judiciary Development Fund (JDF), saying that it is what they use to augment the scant resources of the Judiciary.
This was the first time that the SC has spoken as a collegial body in defending the JDF.
“The entire budget for the Judiciary, however, does not only come from the national government. The Constitution grants fiscal autonomy to the Judiciary to maintain its independence. Courts therefore must also be accountable with its own budget,” the SC said in a decision dismissing the petition filed by Rolly Mijares.
In his petition, Mijares would like to compel the SC to exercise its judicial independent and fiscal autonomy against the perceived hostility of the Congress.
Currently, there are two pending bills in the House of Representatives seeking to repeal the Presidential Decree 19493 or the law that created the JDF— namely House Bill No. 4690 which mandates the transfer of the JDF to the Bureau of Treasury and House Bill No. 4738 which creates the Judicial Support Fund (JSF) in lieu of the JDF which will be under the National Treasury.
The two House Bills were authored by Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Farinas and Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas, Jr., respectively.
Mijares said that the House Bills were borne out of spite following the SC’s ruling, declaring as illegal the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP).
In its ruling, the SC said that Mijares failed to show any of the requisites for mandamus to issue.
“The writ of mandamus will issue when the act sought to be performed is ministerial i.e. it does not require the exercise of judgment. The Court also found that petitioner has not shown how he is entitled to the relief,” the SC said.
In defending the JDF, the SC said that “the JDF used to augment the expenses of the Judiciary, is regularly account for by this Court on a quarterly basis.”
It added that the Judiciary’s financial reports are available to the public in its website.
“These funds, however, are still not enough to meet the expenses of the lower courts and guarantee credible compensation of its personnel. The reality is that halls of justice exist because we rely on the generosity of local government units who provide additional subsidy to our judges,” the SC said.
“If not, the budget for the construction, repair and rehabilitation of halls of justice is with the Department of Justice (DOJ),” it added.
While they expressed appreciation to Mijares’ concern, the SC said that it is better that he goes to Congress.
“There, he may discover the representatives and senators who may have a similar enthusiastic response to truly making the needed investments in the Rule of Law…Court are not constitutionally built to do political lobbying (nor) trained to produce a political statement or a media release,” the SC said.
The JDF came from the docket and other court fees collected by courts nationwide.
It was created under Presidential Decree 1949 issued by former President Ferdinand E. Marcos in 1984 as a special purpose fund for the benefit of the members and personnel of the Judiciary to help ensure and guarantee the independence of the judiciary as mandated by the Constitution and public policy and required by the impartial administration of justice.
Eighty percent of the JDF shall be utilized to augment the allowances of justices, judges and court employees, while the remaining amount will be used for office supplies and facilities. (PNA)