Supreme Court allows only one justice to testify on cases in impeachment complaint against Sereno

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 28) — The Supreme Court on Tuesday authorized only Associate Justice Teresita De Castro to testify in the impeachment hearing against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.

The High Court sitting en banc also permitted all justices and officials to testify in the hearings, but only on administrative matters.

READ: Sereno camp ready for SC justice attending House hearing

SC Spokesperson Theodore Te announced in a press conference after the en banc that De Castro was allowed to discuss “adjudicative matters” on three issues raised by the complainant, lawyer Larry Gadon.

Te said De Castro may talk about the issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the senior citizen’s cases, and the exchange of communications between hers and the chief justice.

Gadon said Sereno sent De Castro a letter admitting that she changed the associate justice’s recommendation on the TRO on the Coalition of Associations of Senior Citizens in the Philippines, which effectively stopped their proclamation.

De Castro was also allowed to discuss the clustering scheme made by Sereno and the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) to fill in multiple vacancies in the Sandiganbayan from former President Benigno Aquino’s shortlist, a move declared unconstitutional by the SC.

Lastly, De Castro was authorized to discuss the appointment of Associate Justice Francis Jardeleza.  Gadon said Sereno excluded Jardeleza from the JBC short list although he had enough votes because of  “personal and political reasons.”

Adjudicative matters include all concerns relating to the decision and deliberation of cases, but Te stressed that De Castro may discuss only the merits of her decisions in the three cases and not on the deliberations.

READ: Supreme Court justices and officials skip Sereno impeachment hearing

De Castro and other SC justices and officials failed to attend impeachment hearings in the House of Representatives this week to to shed light on the complaint.  They said they needed permission from the en banc to do so.

While De Castro has yet to officially confirm her attendance in the hearing, Gadon earlier claimed the associate justice was “very much willing” to be a witness.

READ: Solons: Chief Justice won’t be arrested, or forced to attend House panel impeachment hearings