President Rodrigo Duterte on
Tuesday raised the possibility of declaring martial law if the judiciary will
get in the way of his ongoing war against illegal drugs.
Duterte made the remarks after Chief Justice Maria
Lourdes Sereno wrote him a letter as regards the seven judges that Duterte named
in his list of alleged coddlers of drug dealers.
Sereno had said that the judges Duterte tagged in drug
trafficking should not surrender to law enforcers unless there were warrants
for their arrest
"Ikaw ang kingpin sa judiciary. Ako, presidente. Ako
may trabaho, ikaw wala. Walang mga judges na nagpa-patrol ng daan. Walang mga
sheriff ninyo na naghuhuli," Duterte said in yet another speech before
government troops, this time in Camp Evangelista in Cagayan De Oro City
.
.
"Yan ang mabigat na problema ko... Hindi ako gago.
If this continues, pigilan mo ako, o di sige... Or would you rather that I
declare martial law?" he added.
‘Don’t create a crisis’
Duterte said many have suffered because of the
proliferation of illegal drugs in the country.
"Pinapatay ang mga Pilipino. I grieve for the so
many women raped, men killed, infants raped, tapos ipitin mo ako? I have to
clean," Duterte said.
Duterte also raised the possibility of ordering members
of the executive branch to ignore the orders of the judiciary.
"Do not create a crisis because I will order
everyone in the Executive Department not to honor you," Duterte said.
Duterte also took a swipe at President Benigno Aquino III
and the past administration.
"There was a slaughter going on. And mind you, you
were appointed by the government there in your office as Chief Justice at that
time na walang ginawa ang gobyerno," Duterte said.
‘Protectors of constitutional rights’
In a letter, Sereno told Duterte that she had advised
judges against making themselves "physically accountable" if there
were no warrants issued for their arrest.
"To safeguard the role of the judges as the
protectors of constitutional rights, I would caution them very strongly against
'surrendering' or making themselves physically accountable to any police
officer in the absence of any duly-issued warrant of arrest that is
pending," Sereno told Duterte.
But the President argued that issuing warrants of arrest
to all drug personalities would be next to impossible given the inefficiencies
in the justice system.
"I have my oath. I will honor the Constitution. I
will defend the Constitution to achieve--huwag ka maghanap ng--do not create a
conflict there," the President said.
Constitutional war
"Pag dumating panahon, we go to a crossroads. You
decide. Di ako sunod diyan and please, please, please, please, do not create a
confrontation, a constitutional war. Talo tayo lahat," he added.
Sereno said she found Duterte's pronouncement premature,
fearing this may affect render the concerned judge "useless" in discharging
his or her duties.
"Thus, this Court has been careful, all too aware
that more often than not, a good reputation is the primary badge of credibility
and the only legacy that many of our judges can leave behind," Sereno
said.
#Change is Coming #DuterteCares
Source: http://www.gmanetwork.com
#Change is Coming #DuterteCares
Source: http://www.gmanetwork.com
