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Despite dissent, Carpio says Sereno guilty of impeachable offense

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Arianne Merez, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/news/05/12/sereno-carpio-composites.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and ousted Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno. Composite</figcaption></figure></div><p><br/>MANILA - Despite voting against the ouster of Maria Lourdes Sereno as Chief Justice, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said she had committed culpable violation of the Constitution -- an impeachable offense. </p><p>In his dissenting opinion on the Supreme Court&#x27;s grant of a quo warranto plea to remove Sereno, Carpio said her repeated failure to file her statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALN) while in public office was a ground for impeachment.<br/> <br/>&quot;The repeated non-filing of SALN therefore constitutes culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust, which are grounds for impeachment under the Constitution,&quot; he said.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/11/18/read-justice-carpios-dissenting-opinion-on-sereno-ouster">READ: Justice Carpio&#x27;s dissenting opinion on Sereno ouster</a></li></ul><p>Solicitor General Jose Calida filed the &quot;quo warranto&quot; petition against Sereno due to her failure to submit her SALNs, a requirement set by the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) when she applied for the top judicial post in 2012.</p><p>Sereno submitted only 3 SALNs - those for the years 2009, 2010 and 2011 - when she applied as top magistrate. </p><p>The JBC required the submission of all SALNs of an applicant in government service. </p><p>Later, the substantial compliance was set by the JBC at 10 years prior to application to the top judicial post, or from 2002 to 2011.</p><p>In its ruling, the court had found that Sereno failed to file her SALNs for 11 years - 1986, 1987, 1988, 1992, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 - while holding public office.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/11/18/sc-quo-warranto-remedy-ensures-only-qualified-hold-public-office">SC: Quo warranto remedy ensures only &#x27;qualified&#x27; hold public office</a></li></ul><p>The country&#x27;s first female chief justice, Sereno was ousted by her colleagues on Friday with a vote of 8-6.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/11/18/supreme-court-ousts-chief-justice-sereno">Supreme Court ousts Chief Justice Sereno</a></li>	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/05/11/18/look-who-voted-for-against-sereno-ouster">LOOK: Who voted for, against Sereno ouster</a></li></ul><p>Her removal from office marked the first time the Philippines removed a chief justice through a &quot;quo warranto&quot; plea, a legal recourse Sereno&#x27;s camp had argued as incorrect.</p><p>Sereno is facing a separate impeachment case at the House of Representatives, the first ouster plea filed against her. The case accused Sereno of failing to fully disclose her wealth, leading a lavish lifestyle, and committing administrative irregularities, among others. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/19/18/house-panel-oks-articles-of-impeachment-against-sereno">House panel OKs articles of impeachment against Sereno</a></li></ul><figure class="op-interactive"><div id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1_Container"> <ivs-player id="IVS_ABS_Body_Video_1" data-ivs-spid="3001339" data-ivs-key="e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603" data-ivs-vid="1434093" data-ivs-floating="1"></ivs-player> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/iframe-parent.js"></script> <script src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/js/loader.js"></script> </div></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="~//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="~//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>Lawyer Oscar Franklin Tan on Saturday said the six dissenters to the majority ruling based their decisions on procedure, underscoring that Sereno should have been subjected to impeachment proceedings.</p><p>&quot;The dissenters were more focused on the Constitution and the institutional rules which I have to agree with generally,&quot; he told ANC.</p><p>&quot;Even if you accept a quo warranto, you cannot accept a quo warranto more than six years into office because it would create instability in all government positions,&quot; he added.</p><div><strong>QUO WARRANTO GRANT VIOLATES CONSTITUTION</strong></div><p>In his opinion, Carpio agreed with Sereno&#x27;s argument that she could only be removed from office by impeachment, saying any other process would be a means &quot;to rewrite&quot; the Constitution.</p><p>&quot;The provision mandating removal only by impeachment is the Constitution&#x27;s strongest guarantee of security of tenure. The guarantee effectively blocks the use of other legal ways of ousting an officer,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;To allow any other method is to re-write the Constitution. To permit this quo warranto petition to remove an incumbent member of this Court is to violate the Constitution,&quot; he added.</p><p>What the Supreme Court should have done, Carpio said, was to treat Sereno&#x27;s case as an administrative one and leave it to Congress to decide on her fate.</p><p>&quot;This Court should treat the present quo warranto petition as an<br/>administrative investigation by this Court of one of its members,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;The House impeaches, and the Senate convicts. This is the only<br/>method allowed under the Constitution to remove a member of this Court,&quot; he added.</p><p>He said the removal of impeachable officers from their posts was an &quot;exclusive mandate&quot; of Congress that no court could assume.</p><p>In the majority decision, the court said a quo warranto plea was a valid remedy to ensure that &quot;only qualified individuals&quot; hold public office. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/news/05/11/18/sc-quo-warranto-remedy-ensures-only-qualified-hold-public-office">SC: Quo warranto remedy ensures only &#x27;qualified&#x27; hold public office</a></li></ul>

<p>"No court, not even this Court, can assume the exclusive mandate of Congress to remove impeachable officers from office."</p>

"No court, not even this Court, can assume the exclusive mandate of Congress to remove impeachable officers from office."

Despite dissent, Carpio says Sereno guilty of impeachable offense

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Despite dissent, Carpio says Sereno guilty of impeachable offense

Arianne Merez,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 12, 2018 03:39 PM PHT

|

Updated May 12, 2018 04:02 PM PHT

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ANC

ANC Top

Sereno impeachment

Antonio Carpio

Supreme Court

quo warranto petition

Maria Lourdes Sereno

SC

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