Corona’s fate

Former Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona

The wheel of justice has never turned slowly, surely, and ominously than in the case of erstwhile Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona.

It even started tumultuously, with many describing it as a mere witch-hunting instigated by Malacañang by the haste the Articles of Impeachment was prepared, signed by 188 members of the House of Representatives and submitted to the Senate for action.

Even in the summation of the impeachment trial given by the presiding judge, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, he bewailed the Articles of Impeachment, saying, “As a lawyer, I must confess that I was personally frustrated by the loose and hasty crafting and preparation that characterized the presentation of the charges contained in the Articles of Impeachment.”

The same expression of disappoint was seen and heard from many of the senator-judges, most especially from the feisty Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, who, from the beginning, when she started calling the members of the prosecution panel “gagos” or fools, to the end, when she pleaded, thus, “May God strike me dead for hearing all this stupidity”, never ceased to put on her histrionics and displayed excessive rudeness to the witnesses.

Fortunately, Miriam’s irreverence did not rub off on most of her peers and as the impeachment trial proceeded, dramatic events started unfolding that may very well be described as divine intervention.

Perhaps, eloquence can win a lawyer law suits, but in the case of Corona’s defense panel, headed by the erudite former Justice Serafin Cuevas, a mis-calculation or an error in judgment turned around the case against them.

When the defense thought that the best way to win acquittal for their client was to present Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales as hostile witness, they found themselves falling flat on their faces.

Wanting to take revenge and clear the cloud of doubt about his integrity from the defamation he perceived he have gotten from Carpio-Morales, an old personal and professional adversary, Corona decided to take the witness stand himself, and it was then that the flood-gate of information opened up that eventually saw his defense overwhelmed.

The collective decisions of the 20 senator-judges that voted for conviction can be summed up to one important trait that a public servant must have, especially if he is the highest magistrate of the land: that of having an unquestioned integrity.

Sadly, by his own admission and self-serving interpretation of the law, revolving around Article 2, Corona miserably failed the ‘Caesar’s wife test’ and in the process lost the senator-judges’ votes.

At the end, it can be said that Carpio-Morales’ testimony and Corona’s failure to declare truthfully his assets in his SALNs were convincing facts that sealed Corona’s fate.

Syria on the verge of civil war

Mass burial for Houla massacre victims

Or has civil war started already 14 months ago, when relentless bloodshed started soaking the grounds after a popular uprising against the oppressive regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad erupted?

The situation is getting worst by the day for the Syrian people as the carnage goes unabated, to include now whole families being killed in cold blood. Adding to the woe is Kofi Annan’s peace plan that is blatantly defied by forces loyal to Assad.

Not that the rebels, the Free Syrian Army, has fully complied with the UN- backed peace plan, for they, too, have violated it, but UN observers say the Syrian regime is the worst offender by far.

Lately, gruesome reports have been coming out about families being herded ‘like sheep’ to die in what they describe as the Houla massacre.

Video footage and accounts of activists, survivors, rights groups and UN observers in Syria, provide a harrowing narrative of the violence in the Houla region, about 20 km (13 miles) northwest of the city of Homs.

The UN says 108 people were killed in the May 25 massacre, nearly half of them children.

Among the survivors’ tales are:

“They entered our homes … men wearing fatigues herding us like sheep in the room and started spraying bullets at us,” said an apparently injured woman in a video released by activists.

“My father died and my brother, my mother’s only son. Seven sisters were killed,” the woman said, lying next to another injured woman and near a baby with a chest wound.

Shall the Western countries that believe in freedom and democracy allow the events to get any worst that what it already is?

The events are said to be disputed. The West blames Assad’s forces, while Assad’s government accuses its opponents, whom it refers to as Islamist “terrorists”.

UN peace envoy Kofi Annan having dialogue with Syria President Bashar al-Assad

With Annan’s peace plan on the verge of collapse and Russia’s Vladimir Putin not condemning al-Assad’s atrocity against his own people, but rather supporting it, the Free Syrian Army has warned the Syrian government it will renew its fight to overthrow al-Assad’s despotic regime unless it complies with the UN peace initiative.

The rebel group, which controls parts of some towns and cities as well as large areas of countryside, urged the government to “implement an immediate ceasefire, withdraw its troops, tanks and artillery from Syrian cities and villages,” and allow humanitarian aid to reach civilians.

Considering Russia’s stake on Syria and its recent warning served to Western powers that it is “categorically against” foreign military intervention, we can only assume that there will be more killings and massacres to follow, especially among the non-combatants.

After 14 months living in hell on earth, the ill-fated Syrians could only look up now and pray for divine intervention.

Cannibalized-face victim identified

 

Insets: Rudy Eugene, left, and Ronald Poppo, right

This is not about the headhunters and cannibals still living in Stone Age existence and found in the jungles of Papua New Guinea.

This is about a 21^st century crazed guy committing a hideous crime in a modern metropolis called Miami in the USA.

The man critically injured after a horrific face-eating attack has finally been identified as Ronald Poppo, a 65-year-old homeless man nicknamed ‘Kenny Rogers’, who, according to the few people who knew him, spent most of his time under the MacArthur Causeway. He has records of being arrested a couple of times for crimes that are common for homeless people, such as, sleeping or drinking in public, disorderly conduct and petty larceny.

The man who attacked Poppo, punching him, ripping off his clothes, and gnawing at his face before being shot dead by police, has been identified, before hand, as Rudy Eugene, a former North Miami Beach High School football player.

It remains unclear what brought the two unlikely characters together at the eastern end of the causeway, except that the Miami Police Department was notified that a nude man attacked another individual and appears to be eating his face.

When the police patrol showed up, they demanded Eugene to step away from the victim, but the attacker continued to pull pieces of flesh out of his victim’s face. Officers needed six shots to put the attacker down as he appeared to be unusually strong.

From reports, police claim that judging by his looks, Eugene was high on “bath salts” which are now consumed by drug addicts to recreate the effects of LSD. This is the only explanation that authorities have found for the fact that the man was naked at the time of the attack. Doctors explained that users usually take their clothes off because powerful drugs like heroin, LSD and now “bath salts” cause the body temperature to raise to a dangerous level.

Miami has seen many cases of bath salts-related violence in the past years and, according to investigators, the attackers tend to become very powerful once they take these drugs. The majority of them attack victims with their jaws.

The police claim can only be confirmed once Eugene’s toxicology tests shall have been completed.

 

 

Corona declared guilty

Ex-Chief Justice Renato Corona

With an overwhelming vote of 20-3, the senator-judges decided with finality to convict Renato Corona and remove him as Chief Justice for betrayal of public trust by failing to disclose all his assets.  He was found  guilty of the charge under Article 2 of the Articles of Impeachment.

It will be noted that the impeachment court did not have to vote anymore on the two remaining Articles of Impeachment, which accused Corona of bias for former President and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and of tinkering with a Supreme Court ruling on a case filed by employees of Philippine Airlines against the flag carrier, simply because a conviction has already been secured on Article 2.

It leaves no doubt in the minds of the public and, thankfully, of the senator-judges, therefore, that of the three Articles of Impeachment, the most significant, meaningful and compelling to be resolved, as it had the greatest impact on the Filipino people, was Article 2.

It is for this reason that the course of thought of the twenty, out of the 23 senators, including Senate President and impeachment court presiding officer Juan Ponce Enrile, in deciding to convict Corona for his failure to fully disclose his wealth in his statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN), ran parallel.

What they all meant by there collective decisions can be summed up to one important trait of a public servant, especially if he is the highest magistrate of the land, that of having an unquestioned INTEGRITY.

Sadly, by his own admission and interpretation of the law, revolving around Article 2, he miserably failed the ‘Caesar’s wife test’ and in the process lost the senator-judges’ votes.

It did not do any good that the defense opted to have Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales take the stand as hostile witness, because it only made Corona admit that he had these outrageous peso and dollar deposits, which he disproportionately declared, in the case of his peso account, and with the dollar account not being declared at all. This, after Carpio-Morales presented a report she received from the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) detailing the transactions made by Corona.

Carpio-Morales’ testimony and Corona’s failure to declare TRUTHFULLY his assets were facts that sealed Corona’s fate.

The decisions made by the 20 senators who convicted Corona are all reflected in Enrile’s summation of the trial: “With all due respect, I believe that the respondent Chief Justice’s reliance on the absolute confidentiality accorded to foreign currency deposits under Section 8 of Republic Act No. 6426 is grossly misplaced. The non-disclosure of these deposits, in both local and foreign currency, would naturally result in a corresponding distortion of the Chief Justice’s real net worth. And so, with full trust that the Almighty will see us through the aftermath of this chapter in our nation’s history, I vote to hold the Chief Justice, Renato C. Corona, guilty as charged under Article 2, Par. 2.3, and that his deliberate act of excluding substantial assets from his sworn statement of assets, liabilities and net worth constitutes a culpable violation of the Constitution.”

So, what can one say about the acquittal votes rendered by Senators Joker Arroyo, Miriam Defensor Santiago and Ferdinand Marcos Jr.?

They were simply expressions of their own opinionated views, which were impertinent, at best, and self-serving, at worst.

Arroyo, once a firebrand, does not have the fire in his belly anymore. His usefulness is now past him. He is ready for the pasture.

Miriam did nothing but grandstand  – again, flaunting her superiority and acting narcissist as ever. She was more talking about herself and her future job as judge of the International Criminal Court. It would be a relief not to have her around and hope she finds Zeus, the god of lightning, in the Hague.

As to Bongbong Marcos, the son and namesake of the dictator, he was simply idiotically reflecting and insinuating the unjust treatment his family were subjected in the past and, therefore, identified himself with Corona’s predicament. It was sort of telling the court that Corona is innocent, as the Marcos family was, when they were booted out of the country. He does not know or pretends not to know that they are of the same feathers.

Like the 20 senators who found Corona guilty, the trend of thinking of the 3 senators, who wanted Corona acquitted, also ran parallel, but unfortunately for the two other meaningless Articles of Impeachment and not Article 2, which was the meat and bone of this impeachment trial.

What more evidence were they looking for when Corona himself was the most telling and believable evidence the defense presented for his own conviction?

Fukushima tuna finds way to US waters

 

Pacific bluefin tuna believed contaminated with radioactive substances from the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster

Five months after a magnitude-9 earthquake triggered a tsunami that badly damaged the Fukushima Dai-ichi reactors causing leak of radioactive substances into the seas of Japan, researchers from Stony Brook University in New York have reported that Pacific tuna caught off the coast of San Diego had elevated levels of radioactive isotopes Cesium-134 and Cesium-137.

The levels were said to be 10 times higher than in previous catches off the California coast.

Although previous catches also registered already higher levels of the radioactive substances for the smaller fish and planktons, this is the first time they have discovered it in big fishes, and migratory ones at that, when tissue samples from all 15 tuna captured were analyzed.

The discovery, however, surprised the researchers since bluefin tuna, known for its size, speed and migratory distance traveled, continued to retain in its body radioactive isotopes instead of being dissipated or metabolized, as it should happen, having traveled almost 10,000 kilometers to the shores of the US from Japan and from across the Pacific ocean.

One of the largest and speediest fish, the Pacific bluefin tuna, spawns off the Japan coast and rapidly swims east to the waters off California.

Long before the Fukushima disaster, bluefin tuna that migrated to California and yellowfin tuna that are native to California waters were tested for radioactive substances and both indicated negative results.

This time, however, only the yellowfin tuna showed clean, but the bluefin tuna had signs of the presence of the radioactive isotopes, which indicated that it could only have come from Fukushima.

According to doctoral student Daniel Madigan, who studies the migration patterns of tuna at Stanford University, the amount of Cesium 134 and 137 detected in the fish “didn’t come close to exceeding safety limits.”

Madigan said, noting that what was in the fish, per gram, is lower than the amount of naturally occurring radioactive potassium found per gram in a banana.

Nevertheless, the presence of radioactive substances in big fishes is a warning that should nudge the researchers to monitor closely and do more sampling on migratory fishes, especially the expensive bluefin tuna, for the benefit of the consuming public.

Enrile’s legacy to the nation

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Chief Justice Renato Corona

There is no doubt that Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile’s deft handling of the Renato Corona impeachment trial is the greatest legacy he could leave behind at the end of his illustrious career as senator of the realm.

His incisive questions directed at lead defense counsel, Ex-Justice Serafin Cuevas, right at the end of the oral arguments by both defense and prosecution panels before the senate impeachment court, was, to me, his finest moment.

It did not only show his mastery of the law, that literally put Cuevas on the defensive, but it showed, likewise, an encouraging sight manifested by his voice and gestures of what his vote is going to be.

What are the profound questions asked by Enrile on Cuevas that may have set the tone on how the other senator-judges would vote?

Simply the following:

Enrile asked Cuevas if there was a law that would impose a penalty on a government official if he or she opts to disclose his foreign-denominated assets in his or her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALN).

Cuevas took long to complete his answer, and so Enrile interjected, saying, the Foreign Currency Deposit Act (FCDA) only prohibits third parties, and not the depositor himself or herself, from revealing a depositor’s foreign-denominated assets.

“We are forgetting that the law allows the exposure of foreign currency deposit by express provision of RA 6426 if the depositor himself would do it.” Enrile said.

“There is no secrecy law in the country that prohibits or inhibits or proscribes the depositor to reflect (the amount in his SALN),” Enrile added. “What is prohibited is for third parties to reveal it. The depositor is not (prohibited from disclosing.)”

Enrile then asked Cuevas whether disobeying the command to declare all assets constitutes “culpable” violation of the Constitution.

Cuevas said circumstances would be different for each case, adding it would thus be hard to give an answer.

Enrile’s finest moments against Cuevas: “That is your bad luck.”

At this point, Enrile asked Cuevas for the meanings of the Latin terms “culpa” and “dolus”.

Accordingly, both are Latin words used in law, the latter referring to evil intent, embracing both malice and fraud; and the former referring to a fault, sin, or guilt.

Cuevas, who wasn’t sure about the answers, joked he could not recall what the terms mean, “maybe because I was absent when it was discussed.”

Enrile then said, “That’s your bad luck…It’s material in the consideration of the provision in the Constitution.” Obviously, he was referring to the idea of whether Corona had intentionally tried to hide his assets or if he had, as his defense panel insists, merely acted on good faith.

Enrile stressed that the law makes no mention of the intent of the alleged violator. “It does not call for any intent,” Enrile said. “Where in that provision do you find intent?”

Enrile’s statements did not only sound ominous against Corona’s fate, but, on the whole, his leadership as the presiding judge of the senate impeachment court has made it providential, if not more idyllic.

(Note: Related to this article, please refer to Quierosaber’s blog: Enrile’s crowning glory – dated Jan. 18, 2012)

 

Warm wishes on Memorial Day

Since we don’t celebrate Memorial Day in our country, let me just take this opportunity instead to greet the people of America my warm wishes as you celebrate Memorial Day!

Somehow I feel kinship with you, as once upon a time, I was a member of the Seabees, specifically of the U.S. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11 (USN MCB-11), which had tours of duty in Danang and QuangTri during the Vietnam War. (For more on this please refer to Quierosaber’s blog: Veterans of Foreign war – February 19, 2009)

As a testimony, I am enclosing an email which I received acknowledging my participation and service:

Petty Officer Sievert,

Thank you for your service to our country.

Memorial Day – May 28th.

Sincerely,

Your Friends The 1,250,000 Veterans at
http://www.VetFriends.com

You are receiving this email as a registered member of VetFriends.com.

I always took pride and considered it a great honor to have served in the USN MCB-11 in the Vietnam War, though unpopular it may have been.  But, in the name of freedom and democracy, I would do it again.

To my contemporaries who have made it this far, my thoughts are with you on this day.

To those who did not make it through during the war and did not come to live this day, my prayers are with you always.

In this connection, it makes me doubly proud to share with you this Memorial Day 2012 video, where the National Anthem is sung by Filipino-Mexican-American, Jessica Sanchez.

Corona doomed his own acquittal – Part II

Against his doctors’ advice, Chief Justice Renato Corona returned from hospital intensive care to the Senate impeachment trial for his second time around at the witness stand.

The question is: Did he perform under a better scripted role this time?

Not to the viewing public’s recollection, I don’t think, and surely even his statements and answers to the Senator-judges’ questions made it less convincing for them to believe that Corona is fit to continue heading the judiciary.

Despite his profuse apologies for his sudden departure from the witness stand that ruffled the feathers of the Senator-judges and the dramatic reconciliation of the Basa-Corona families in full view of the public that were, no doubt, meant to elicit more sympathy, these developments had lesser impact on the sensibilities of the people.

Basa-Corona families reconciliation

What was crucial during Corona’s second and last day in court was about truth and trust. It was about hearing his interpretation and explanation on why he did not fully disclose/declare his assets in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN)?

It will be noted that Corona admitted to having four US dollar accounts containing, according to him, $2.4 million and around P80.7 million in peso deposits.

When asked why he did not report these accounts in his SALNs, Corona explained that the confidentiality of dollar accounts under the Foreign Currency Deposits Act (FCDA) was absolute, while the peso accounts consisted of “co-mingled funds,” including the savings of members of his family and P34.7 million in proceeds from the sale of a Manila property owned by the business company of his wife’s family.

Senators Franklin Drilon and Aquilino Pimentel III

Most senators found Corona’s explanation simplistic, if not totally absurd, especially coming from a Chief Justice (CJ). More than anything, it was a self-serving analysis of the law. It was short of saying that the CJ’s interpretation, especially of the FCDA, is full of holes and he may very well sink with it.

“That is a totally erroneous interpretation,” Sen. Franklin Drilon said. “There is no question that a dollar deposit is an asset, and it’s a twisted logic that you need not report because it’s strictly confidential. That’s absurd.”

Drilon added, “If you interpret it in that manner, then a corrupt official will simply convert the money he has stolen into dollars, and deposit these, and he has no obligation to report it.”

Even neophyte Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III had this to say: “If [the bank deposits are] in your name and you are a public officer, you are duty-bound to disclose [them]. He (Corona) knew he is a public officer, he should not have allowed the co-mingling of funds that he doesn’t own in his account.”

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales calling Corona a certified liar

It did not also do any good that Corona badmouthed Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales over his claims before the impeachment court that she wanted a higher retirement pay or that she allowed herself to be used by Malacañang. Fuming mad, the Ombudsman didn’t waste time in calling for a press conference to deny the allegations.

Corona’s accusations were frivolous as it were inconsequential to his own trial, but nevertheless Carpio-Morales extracted a satisfying revenge that appropriately described Corona, saying: “Corona is a certified LIAR. Re her SC retirement: I did not ask for reconsideration when he gave me a rock bottom amount of P500T. The favored ones got as much as P1.5M. Re conscience: Yes, I have a clean, clear conscience but Corona-nada ! There’s this Spanish saying which goes, “El ladron piensa de otros, que todos, como el, son ladrones”. Translation- “A thief thinks that all others, like him, are thieves.”

Very well said, indeed. Their own personal issues are important insights that could help tilt the balance when deciding the case. They are issues that, once and for all, should be resolve in favor of the citizenry and not for Corona’s self-interest. It is of paramount importance that the public must have absolute trust and confidence in the justice, probity, integrity, and impartiality, of the members of the Supreme Court.

 

 

Scandal rocks the Vatican anew

 

Pope Benedict XVI with personal butler Paolo Gabriele

An in-house scandal at the Vatican over leaked documents or ‘Vatileaks’ became even more sensational with the arrest of Pope Benedict XVI’s butler.

Paolo Gabriele, a layman and member of the papal household, was arrested after Holy See papers were found in his Vatican City apartment.

Gabriele is often seen by Pope Benedict XVI’s side in public, riding in the front seat of his open-air jeep during Wednesday general audiences or shielding the pontiff from the rain. He has been the pope’s personal butler since 2006, one of the few members of the small papal household that also includes the pontiff’s private secretaries and four consecrated women who care for the papal apartment.

The butler has been ascribed as the mole, who, even the Pontiff wanted ferreted out for leaking embarrassing revelations to the press about alleged corruption, political infighting and mismanagement that have emerged about the Holy See over the past year.

The arrest of Gabriele came on the heels of the surprised ouster of the president of the Vatican bank, Ettore Gotti Tedeschi, by his board.

The respected financier was ousted after months of internal battles following his insistence on applying the anti-money laundering rules demanded by the European Commission. Mr Gotti Tedeschi, 67, an expert on financial ethics, was put in charge of the bank – also known as the Institute for Religious Works or Istituto per le Opere de Religione (IOR) – in 2009, specifically to clean-up its reputation.

Note that the IOR, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, is the same institution involved in a major political and financial scandal in the 1980s, concerning the 1982 $3.5 billion collapse of Banco Ambrosiano, of which it was a major shareholder.

According to reports, Gotti Tadeschi’s plan to introduce transparency was at first agreed by key figures at the Vatican, including the powerful secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone. But when he insisted that the anti-corruption regulations should be retroactive, Cardinal Bertone and other key figures are thought to have turned against him.

As to why senior Vatican officials were opposed to the rules being retroactive speaks volume, as can be deduced from Gotti Tadeschi statement: “I’d prefer not to comment, otherwise I would have some very unpleasant things to say. Just have patience.”

Whether coincidental or deliberate, the scandal also took turn for the worst following the publication of Your Holiness: The Secret Papers of Benedict XVI in which the author use papers by “Maria,” purportedly a Vatican insider, to describe a papacy that is beset by intrigues, political games, corruption and cronyism.

 

Japanese man cooks, serves own genitals for a cause

Mao Sugiyama preparing his unique dish

“The meal came complete with mushrooms and a parsley garnish,” according to reports.

But, hey, this is Japan and no one question it is one place where people do bizarre acts!

This is about the case of 22-year-old Mao Sugiyama, a Tokyo-based illustrator, who in his burning desire to raise awareness about sexual minorities, had his penis and testicles surgically removed in March and kept them frozen for two months only to be dished out — seasoned and braised — to customers crazy enough to respond and partake after posting the invitation on his Twitter account.

Sugiyama, who considers himself “asexual”, that is without gender, initially thought about eating the genitals himself, but decided to solicit paying customers to help pay his hospital bills for the surgery.

The artist also said on Twitter the the organ had been removed by a physician and certified to be free of infections.

The meal was prepared under the supervision of a certified cook and diners were required to sign a waiver indemnifying Sugiyama and event organizers.

Before the event took place, however, Sugiyama made sure he violated no laws, including a ban on organ sales, processing of medical waste and food sanitation requirements. Even the issue of cannibalism was never brought up since there is no law prohibiting cannibalism in Japan.

Thus, for a truly unique meal, diners paid 20,000 yen ($250) for the plate with a portion of genitals complete with mushrooms and a parsley garnish.

According to the diners, the food was rather rubbery and all they tasted was the red wine the genitals were braised in, having been convinced that Sugiyama was not a natural-born chef.

Ugh!!!