Chief Justice Peralta 'happy' with approval ratings, vows continued reforms in courts
MANILA, Philippines — Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta welcomed the Pulse Asia trust rating in this time of pandemic, and vowed that he will continue to institute reforms in the Judiciary in this time of pandemic.
Supreme Court spokesperson Brian Hosaka said Tuesday that Peralta is “happy that despite a relatively lower awareness by the public he still had a positive approval rating.”
Pulse Asia on Monday released approval and trust ratings of top public officials. The poll, conducted September 14 to 20, showed 44% of Filipinos approved of Peralta’s performance, while 13% said otherwise. The survey showed that 68% of Filipinos are aware of Peralta, with 39% of trust rating.
Hosaka said that Peralta and other justices of the court are appointed officials and they would fetch lower awareness rate from the public compared to other government officials.
The poll showed that President Rodrigo Duterte, Vice President Leni Robredo, Senate President Vicenter Sotto III and House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano posted 100% awareness ratings.
Hosaka said that more than anything, Peralta is “concentrated on providing the necessary reforms in the Judiciary to ensure the public that Justice will be better served.”
“That is the thrust of the Peralta Court,” Hosaka added.
The SC official stressed that Peralta is more concerned on the effectiveness of the rules and circulars issued since he assumed his post as chief justice. These include circulars during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns enforced, and the public’s continuous access to the courts.
Peralta ordered the physical closure of courts when the government enforced enhanced community quarantine measures in Metro Manila but ensured that courts may be reached through their email addresses, hotlines and social media pages.
The SC also allowed electronic trials during lockdowns and, with the Philippine National Police, has rolled out its Enhanced e-Warrant system to speed up the service of law enforcement agencies.
The SC however was criticized by Kapatid, a support group for families and friends of political prisoners, for taking too long on ruling on the petition of families of 22 political prisoners seeking humanitarian release during the pandemic. — Kristine Joy Patag
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