MANILA – Seniority is not necessarily followed in the appointment of the Supreme Court chief justice, according to Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo.
Whoever gets appointed as the top magistrate will still be up to President Rodrigo Duterte, Panelo told reporters in a briefing on Monday.
Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio was the most senior among five nominees shortlisted by the Judicial and Bar Council.
Other nominees in the shortlist were Carpio’s fellow associate justices Lucas Bersamin, Diosdado Peralta, Estela Perlas-Bernabe, and Andres Reyes Jr.
Asked about the certainty that Carpio sits as chief justice, what with tradition showing seniority as basis in the selection, Panelo said, “Not necessarily.”
“Siguro all things being equal, e paano ’pag hindi equal? It’s the President’s call, the prerogative lodged on him by the Constitution. It’s discretionary,” he added.
Panelo denied that Carpio’s stand on the dispute at the West Philippine Sea could affect his chances of getting appointed chief justice.
Carpio stood pat on his position for the government to defend its sovereign rights by strongly asserting the international court’s ruling invalidating China’s claims over the disputed waters.
Duterte, on the other hand, temporarily set aside the decision to give way to bilateral talks between both the Philippines and China.
Panelo cited former presidential spokesman Harry Roque as an example of Duterte appointing to his Cabinet a member who did not share his opinions on certain policies.
“If you will look at the history of the President, when he appointed Harry Roque, his spokesperson, I remember, during the campaign, he was against the President,” Panelo said in a Palace briefing.
“He (Roque) was supporting another candidate and yet the President appointed him, and he became a member of the Cabinet,” Panelo added.
Duterte has appointed leftist members, including former agency heads Rafael Mariano of the Department of Agrarian Reform, Judy Taguiwalo of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and Liza Maza of the National Anti-Poverty Commission, said the spokesman.
“Those members of the Cabinet coming from the left, they were attacking the President and yet they were appointed,” Panelo said.
“So, I don’t think you can derive a conclusion that just because someone is a critic of the administration, he cannot be appointed,” he added.
The next Chief Justice will succeed former top magistrate Teresita de Castro, who was appointed by Duterte in August.
On Aug. 27 Duterte told reporters that his basis for appointing de Castro was her “seniority.”
“Sa lahat iyan sa civil service, sa military, pati sa everybody, seniority and parang conveyor,” Duterte said. (PNA)
