‘Sereno blaming SC for widow’s delayed pension’

MANILA, Philippines — Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno continues to be under fire for the alleged delay in the release of survivorship benefits of a widow of a Court of Appeals justice who recently passed away without receiving her pension, even as the Supreme Court has come to Sereno’s defense.

Lawyer Lorenzo Gadon, complainant in the impeachment case against Sereno, accused the SC chief of lying when her camp claimed that the delay in the release of 94-year-old Dolores Colayco’s pension could be attributed to a collegial action of the justices.

“Sereno is in effect blaming the justices of the Supreme Court by saying that the release of survivorship benefits was only approved a few days ago. This lie and the passing the blame stunt of the Office of the Chief Justice on the issue of delays of the release of survivorship benefits has become infuriating and disgusting,” he alleged in a statement.

SC spokesman Theodore Te said Colayco’s late husband Jose compulsorily retired from the judiciary on Dec. 17, 1982 at age 70 and died on May 26, 1992.

At the time of his death, Te said Republic Act 910 provided that upon the death of a retired justice, no further benefits were due the spouse.

Te said Republic Act 9946 was enacted in 2010, substantially amending RA 910 and Colayco’s application for survivorship benefits was received by the SC from the CA in August 2016.

“Considering the possibility of conflicting resolutions on the application of survivorship benefits, the Supreme Court en banc had to arrive at a policy decision,” Te said, noting that the policy decision was arrived at last Sept. 19.

“In its Resolution, the Supreme Court resolved, among others, to grant the application for survivorship pension benefits of the legitimate spouses of justices and judges who retired prior to RA 9946. Thus, the application of Mrs. Colayco was approved on Oct. 10, 2017. The benefits that Mrs. Colayco was entitled to receive will accrue to her heirs,” Te explained.

But Gadon rebutted the statement of Te that the benefits for Colayco would anyway be accrued to her heirs.

“Survivorship benefits are granted by law precisely for the benefit of the surviving spouse of deceased justices or judges, for their sustenance and medicine. They are not intended as inheritance money for the children of the late Justice Colayco. The pension was supposed to be given by the government as its obligation to take care of the widowed spouses of the justices and judges who served the country in their lifetimes,” Gadon argued.  

Gadon also contested the claim of Sereno’s spokesman, lawyer Jojo Lacanilao, that the Chief Justice “did not delay action on the resolution of survivorship petitions filed by Mrs. Colayco and all other surviving spouses of deceased justices and judges.”