THE camp of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Sunday said the probe into her psychiatric examination score was a “desperate” move to push to impeach her.
In an interview on dzBB radio, lawyer Carlo Cruz, one of Sereno’s spokesmen, insisted that her psychiatric examination score had no bearing on the impeachment complaint against her but was only meant to defame her.
“Hindi namin maintindihan kung bakit tinatalakay ang bagay na ito. Ang sa aming pananaw, kasi nakikita ng ating mga kababayan na medyo malapit yata na gusto nilang siraan ang ating Punong Mahistrado at medyo may mga nagsasabi sa ating mga kababayan na hindi naman ito walang basehan,” Cruz said.
“Parang desperado ang mga moves nila para lang ipakita kunwari na meron namang kaso, e wala naman yan sa ating Konstitusyon.”
At the resumption of the House Committee on Justice hearing on Wednesday, former clerk of court Enriqueta Vidal confirmed that Sereno only received a score of 4 in her psychiatric test performed as part of her application for her position.
But Cruz said it was even lawyer-complainant Lorenzo Gadon who said that the psychiatric examination score was not material to the impeachment complaint.
“Si Chief Justice Sereno, nung siya ay associate justice ay nag-apply siya nung nagkaroon ng bakante sa opisina ng Punong Mahistrado. Siya ay nag-submit ng mga kwalipikasyon niya, in-interview siya,” Cruz said.
“Nakita ng mga miyembro ng JBC [Judicial and Bar Council] na qualified naman siya, kaya isinama siya sa listahan ng mga nominado, siya ay na-appoint ni Pangulong [Benigno] Aquino [III].”
With the move to probe her psychiatric exam score, Cruz said, it was as if the House panel and Gadon were appealing the decision of the JBC and Aquino to nominate and appoint Sereno to the position.
The House justice panel will resume on Monday its deliberations to determine probable cause on the impeachment complaint against Sereno.