Finally, Velasco named SC justice

President Arroyo named Presbitero Velasco Jr. yesterday as the newest justice of the Supreme Court, her 11th appointee to the 15-member High Tribunal.

Speaking to reporters yesterday, Velasco said he would work for the expeditious delivery of justice in the cases before the Supreme Court.

"I have been a staunch advocate of the three E’s of justice — efficient, effective and expeditious delivery of justice," he said. "I believe that justice delayed is injustice. For my new position, I would expect work, work and more work."

Velasco met yesterday with Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez and other SC associate justices.

Velasco, a former Supreme Court administrator, has been nominated for the position five times since 2002.

It was only yesterday that Mrs. Arroyo officially appointed him as associate justice.

Velasco will fill the vacancy left by Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. who retired last December.

Meanwhile, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye brushed aside claims that Mrs. Arroyo had gained control of the Supreme Court as a majority of the justices now are her appointees.

"I believe in the independence of the Supreme Court as a separate branch of government and they have (always) risen to the occasion," he said. "We believe that tradition will continue."

Bunye said there was no reason to doubt the Supreme Court’s independence just because most of the justices were appointed by Mrs. Arroyo.

"On the whole, we can say that the Supreme Court has shown its independence in ruling on many cases," he said. "The government has lost cases too, and that goes to show the independence of the Supreme Court."

The Supreme Court should be allowed to work within its own system of deciding on cases filed before it, he added.

Other appointees of Mrs. Arroyo in the Supreme Court are Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, and Associate Justices Antonio Carpio, Renato Corona, Alicia Austria-Martinez, Conchita Carpio-Morales, Adolfo Azcuna, Romeo Callejo, Dante Tinga, Minita Chico-Nazario and Cancio Garcia.

Associate Justices Reynato Puno and Leonardo Quisumbing were appointed by former President Fidel Ramos, while Associate Justices Consuelo Ynares-Santiago and Angelina Sandoval-Gutierrez were named by ousted President Joseph Estrada.

Velasco topped the five nominees on the short list of the Judicial and Bar Council for the lone vacant post in the SC.

Velasco first entered public service when he was appointed as justice undersecretary in 1995.

After serving the department for three years, he was appointed associate justice of the Court of Appeals.

He became court administrator of the Supreme Court from Sept. 11, 2001 prior to his appointment as associate justice.

As court administrator, Velasco was tasked to supervise all lower courts in the country.

An honor law graduate of the University of the Philippines, Velasco placed sixth in the 1971 Bar after garnering a score of 89.85 percent.

Meanwhile, Gonzalez told reporters yesterday that Velasco’s appointment could be considered one of President Arroyo’s best decisions.

"He is an asset because he knows the work of the court, he knows the problems," he said. "He is competent and experienced."

Integrated Bar of the Philippines national president Joel Cadiz said in a statement that Velasco’s appointment is truly a most welcome event because the new SC justice had served with the highest distinction as IBP national president in 1987 and knows exactly the concerns of all lawyers and can be counted on for strategic solutions to address them.

In another statement, the Philippine Judges Association said through its president, Judge Romeo Barza of the Makati RTC, that Velasco deserves his appointment, being a "role model for all magistrates."

It was learned that Velasco worked for the passage of Republic Act 9227, which granted allowances to all justices and judges.

Velasco is married to Lorna Quinto, a businesswoman and community leader, and they have three children. — Aurea Calica, James Mananghaya