Guingona brokered term-sharing deal
Published : Tuesday, February 07, 2012 00:00
Written by : Jomar Canlas, Reporter
MEMBERS of the Liberal Party, the political group of President Benigno Aquino 3rd, reportedly prodded Chief Justice Renato Corona to accept a term-sharing deal with Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio so that the latter would also get to sit as chief magistrate, an unimpeachable source told The Manila Times on Monday.
Sen. Teofisto Guingona 3rd allegedly brokered the deal, and it was he who urged the Chief Justice to accept the offer. When Corona turned it down, allies of President Aquino in Congress aggressively moved to impeach the Chief Justice, the source added.
A day before the impeachment trial started at the Senate, Corona lambasted the President, Carpio and Transportation Secretary Manuel Roxas 2nd for conspiring to have him ousted from his post.
According to the source, Guingona attempted to pressure Corona to step down.
“A term-sharing formula was proposed where Corona will step down mid-way of his term to allow President Aquino to appoint Carpio as his successor,” the source revealed.
Corona’s term as Chief justice ends on October 15, 2018. Carpio will retire on October 26, 2019.
The source claimed that a judicial coup was launched to wrest control of the leadership of the judiciary in November last year.
He said that it was Guingona who “formulated” the term-sharing deal between Corona and Carpio sometime in November 2011.
“The proposed term-sharing agreement relayed by [Guingona] to the Chief Justice is a power grab, plain and simple, because it was not sanctioned by any rules and laws of succession,” the source said. What made matters worse, he added, was that a politician like Guingona was involved.
“Obviously, [Guingona] was acting on behalf of the President and Carpio,” he added.
Drilon too
The source claimed too that Sen. Franklin Drilon also sent an emissary to Corona to pressure him to resign.
Drilon is the vice chairman of the Liberal Party.
“Drilon, through an emissary, asked Chief Justice Corona to resign to avoid being humiliated, along with his family, in the impeachment proceedings,” the source added.
Corona reportedly rejected the power-sharing agreement or resignation because, if he agrees, it would mean the subjugation of the judiciary by Malacaņang.
Sponsored by Palace
The source said that President Aquino started the attacks against Corona when he rejected the power-sharing deal.
“When Corona rejected the power-sharing agreement, Malacaņang unleashed its scathing attacks on the chief magistrate and mobilized its factotums in Congress to ram through the impeachment of Corona, in a ‘shock and awe’ fashion, hoping to compel him to give up the most coveted post in the judiciary without undergoing impeachment trial, just like what Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez did,” the source said.
Carpio is reportedly very close to the Guingona family, particularly with the former Vice President, Teofisto Guingona Jr.
Guingona Jr. served as Justice secretary during the Ramos administration, while Carpio was former President Fidel Ramos’ chief legal counsel.