SUPREME Court (SC) Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno on Thursday urged President Benigno Aquino 3rd to use his Constitutional powers in going after erring government officials who dipped their hands into government coffers.

Speaking during the 3rd Integrity Initiative Summit organized by the Makati Business Club (MBC) at the Makati Shangri-la, Sereno said the President has enough powers under the Constitution to effectively address the problem of public funds misuse.

Sereno herself is a beneficiary of the government's anti-corruption effort being the successor of former chief justice Renato Corona who was impeached last year after he was found to have misdeclared his statement of assets liabilities and net worth (SALN).

She said that the President should utilize his wide spectrum of investigative and prosecutorial powers in going after erring public officials, regardless of their affiliation or position in the bureaucracy.

The chief justice issued the call amid the controversies hounding the alleged misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or so-called pork barrel funds by some lawmakers.

Three senators and several former congressmen and other government officials have already been charged with plunder in connection with the pork barrel scam allegedly engineered by businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles.

Weapon

Sereno explained that the Executive department has the Commission on Audit (COA) as its main weapon in monitoring and checking the fiscal performance of various government agencies.

She said the President is naturally expected to act on COA audit reports under his "faithful execution of the laws" duty under Section 5, Article VII of the Constitution.

"The spectrum of actions he can perform under his 'supervision and control' powers is wide," Sereno said in her speech.

For this purpose, she said that not only can the Chief Executive investigate administratively the performance of any executive department agency, he can also reshuffle personnel.

"He [Aquino] should take all necessary actions to protect government assets from misuse," she stressed.

AMLC

According to Sereno, the President can also investigate instances of money laundering by tapping the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).

She said the AMLC has the authority to investigate and ask the Court of Appeals to freeze "dirty money" and file complaints with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of the Ombudsman.

As to the role of the judiciary, Sereno said it is only tasked to adjudge guilt or innocence in the legal liability for misuse of public funds.

"But it can only do so on the basis of the provisions of the Constitution or the law that are alleged to have been violated, and on the basis of the admissibility and the weight of the evidence that are before it," she pointed out.

"If the action is civil, then only a preponderance of evidence is sufficient. If it is criminal, then the crime has to be proven beyond reasonable doubt."

The chief magistrate pointed out that the judiciary is prohibited from making decisions based on political considerations and in order to conform to public sentiment.

"The judiciary must remain deaf, even to the public clamor for conviction, and can only hear what is appropriately brought before its halls of justice," she said.

"That is why it is all-important that the country must have a judiciary that is populated by independent, competent judges who live in constant mortal fear of not doing what is right," she added.

The Integrity Initiative is a private sectorled campaign introduced by the MBC in 2010 to promote good governance, transparent business transaction and implement strict ethical standards. It was attended by business executives and members of the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP).

Source: Manila Times; News; 20 September 2013