Panelo denies Duterte hand in Sereno ouster

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte is not the brains behind the historic ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as the chief magistrate of the Supreme Court, Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo said Saturday, May 12.

"It is out of the President's character to meddle in issues like that (Sereno's impeachment)," Panelo said in a radio interview, a day after the high tribunal voted 8-6 to impeach Sereno.

"First and foremost, he does not intervene in the affairs of his departments and Cabinet members. What more to other branches of government? The President has no hand in it," he added.

Sereno was unseated by her colleagues at the Supreme Court, the first time it happened in the Philippine history. Usually, an impeachable officer is removed from office through impeachment proceedings heard by Congress.

Aside from the quo warranto plea, Sereno is also facing an impeachment case before the House of Representatives.

On Friday, May 11, the Supreme Court voted in favor of the quo warranto petition lodged by Solicitor General Jose Calida, seeking to invalidate Sereno's appointment as top magistrate.

Sereno is the second chief justice to be ousted, following former Chief Justice Renato Corona who was impeached in 2012 for failure to fully disclose his wealth.

Prior to the high court's decision against Sereno, Duterte in April announced that the female head magistrate is now his "enemy" for accusing him of being behind the filing of quo warranto case against her.

The President also instructed his allies at the House of Representatives to hasten Sereno's ouster, saying that she is not deserving to serve the top post in the Supreme Court as she is "bad for the Philippines."

Following her impeachment, Sereno could seek her last resort to file a motion for reconsideration (MR) to reverse the ruling against her.

Panelo tried to console Sereno even though she belonged to the opposition, telling the latter still has the chance to win, if she contests her colleagues' decision.

"Under the file, she is entitled to file an MR. Considering that it is a tight race in the voting -- 8-6 -- it could be on even terms. So [Chief] Justice Sereno still has the chance," he said.

"She still has the chance... Perhaps, one magistrate might be enlightened and change his mind, because there are instances that the Supreme Court's decision changes," Panelo added.