Leave

Her lawyers initially verbally described it as a “wellness leave.” Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s own letter to the SC deputy clerk of court speaks of an “indefinite leave” charged against her wellness leave.

The written record hews more closely to what Sereno’s colleagues at the en banc reportedly demanded of their chief. Several media accounts, quoting Court insiders, report a tense session between the Chief Justice and her colleagues last Tuesday.

The other magistrates, according to the reports, demanded an explanation from Sereno about issues raised at the House impeachment hearing. Specifically, they referred to issues surrounding her absent SALNs and the conclusion arrived at by the BIR that she paid to fully pay her taxes.

It is widely known that the relationship between Sereno and her colleagues at the High Court has never been harmonious. A number of magistrates appeared at the House hearing to give testimony about Sereno’s handling of the post.

Nor has the relationship between Sereno and employees of the Supreme Court been harmonious. Through the length of the House hearings on the impeachment complaint filed against the Chief Justice, we have seen neither the magistrates, nor the judges, nor the court employees rally behind their chief.

Sereno has been practically enduring the impeachment process by her lonesome. Her relationship with her colleagues on the bench appears to have become untenable.

Contrast this with the way the Court, its employees, the entire judicial branch and the lawyers’ groups rallied behind the beleaguered Renato Corona when the Noynoy administration campaigned to impeach him. Corona lost that battle in the end, but not without the massive redeployment of government funds the Supreme Court later deemed unconstitutional.

Sereno’s lawyers are trying very hard to sell their (uncorroborated) version of events. They characterize Sereno’s application for leave as entirely her initiative. They say the leave is meant to prepare for her defense during the imminent impeachment trial. They deny she underpaid her taxes. They might as well insist she filed all her SALNs – even if they could not be found.

The same lawyers are trying a bit too hard convincing us that Sereno will never resign her post. Of course they will insist on fighting it out at the impeachment court. The more protracted the process, the better for their lawyers’ fees.

But more and more people are taking the contrary view – especially the magistrates of the High Court. They do not want to see the institution damaged by a long-drawn out impeachment battle. We have gone through this before. We know it is not pretty.

Some justices are of the view that the judiciary should settle the problems from within that branch of government rather than allow the other branches to do it for them. Judicial independence is best conserved by the judiciary curing its own ills. The view seems to indicate Sereno’s own colleagues see her stonewalling an exercise in futility.

There was breaking news yesterday that the justices, disappointed at the way Sereno packaged her leave and expecting she would abide by their collegial consensus, could be releasing a joint statement soon. Such a statement will be the equivalent of a vote of no-confidence in Sereno’s leadership.

If the rumored statement is indeed released, Sereno’s colleagues will make clear they do not want her just to file a leave of absence. They want her to leave.

There should be an endpoint to this nightmare.

Cesspool

When President Duterte described Boracay as a cesspool, many thought he was exaggerating.

He was not. On close inspection, the tourist draw does turn out to be an environmental calamity. After years of weak regulation, Boracay has become the textbook case on how tourist facilities should not be managed.

Boracay used to be the brightest spot for our tourism industry. Now it is the darkest example of how things could go so horribly wrong.

In a way, the island is the victim of its own success. As the stream of tourists poured in, enterprises rushed in with little care for conserving the environment. Forest reserves were cut down. Resorts freely violated easement rules and extended into the beach. Only 14 percent of establishments were linked to the water treatment facility. The rest simply allowed waste to flow to the sea, the same body of water where tourists frolicked.

If nothing is done to restore sanity in Boracay, the destination will undermine confidence in all our other tourist sites. It will torpedo our entire tourism campaign.

The Department of Tourism is proposing a drastic response to the discovery Boracay is rotting from within. The agency wants to close down the island until all violations are corrected and all regulations applied.

Closing down Boracay will be painful. We are entering our peak tourist season. Millions, maybe billions, in potential revenues will be foregone. Millions invested in illegal facilities will face the tender mercies of the bulldozers.

But we must do what needs to be done. The credibility of our entire tourism industry is on the line. Shut the place down if that is necessary. Charge the local governments for failing to enforce regulations.

Restoring the environmental integrity of the island will take time. The forests stolen by developers must grow back. The sea must be allowed to recover. All the hundreds of enterprises that blossomed because of the tourist boom must be linked to an efficient water treatment facility. The expensive resorts that encroach on the beach must be demolished.

We need to impress on the other tourist areas that the rules are not to be flouted.