She may be Supreme Court Chief Justice for only 41 days but newly appointed Chief Justice Teresita de Castro looked radiant and happy—like she were on cloud nine—nonetheless.
We cannot really fault her for acting that way. After all, she has just been given the biggest prize of all.
What could one do in 41 days? Well, she has already been quoted in the papers as saying that she would institute judicial reforms. She was also advised to stay out of politics.
Why don’t we just let her enjoy whatever is left of her government service before reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70 years old? With the time that she has left, she will hardly be able to do very much. When she finally retires, there will be plenty of time to evaluate her legacy to the Supreme Court. This is because for better or for worse, she will be remembered as the Supreme Court Justice who became a witness against her former colleague Lourdes Sereno, became her fiercest critique and then sat in judgment and voted to oust her from office in a quo warranto case. People might say that for the sake of delicadeza, Chief Justice De Castro should have inhibited herself in the case. But times have changed.
People might also question why the President appointed someone who will only serve for 41 days. As the President himself said, he was only following seniority. He does not know De Castro nor did he talk to her before the appointment. But any statement from the President would not have satisfied everyone and not stopped the many conspiracy theories as to the real reason for the appointment. We have to accept the statement of the President at face value because whether we like it or not, he has the authority to appoint anyone he likes so long as that person possesses the minimum qualification. We of course do not know whether history will be kind to the Chief Justice, but that will be for historians to decide. In the meantime, she should just try to enjoy what is left of her term instead of trying to do so much in just 41 days.
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It is time that President Duterte and the top man of the National Democratic Front, Jose Maria Sison, stopped their ongoing verbal war on who is healthier between the two of them.
This is not only because their verbal tussle will not solve anything. The people might wonder about what is going on in the minds of the two gentlemen. People might also think that the long-distance rhetorical war is juvenile, not befitting the office of the President of the land and also a veteran communist ideologue and revolutionary. But perhaps it is better to have verbal fireworks than a shooting war. What these two gentlemen should do is to find a way around their differences to finally sit down and talk peace for the sake of the country.
We now hold the distinction of having the longest insurgency in the world. What is clear is that the lives of both men are nearer the end than the beginning—healthy or not. There is therefore a great incentive for both to be able to strike a peace deal. For President Duterte, he would become the President who was able to bring an end to the 50-year communist insurgency. Luis Jalandoni, one of the senior leaders of the NDF, has called the President brethren —and for good reason. As mayor of the City of Davao for 20 years, he was able to strike a deal with the New People’s Army to keep Davao free of fighting by clever diplomacy. He told the NPA that they would be safe in Davao City so long as there is no fighting. If there is a President who can strike a peace deal with the NPA, it should be President Duterte. At no time in the past were members of the left given so many senior-level positions in the government than this president. But even with the resignations of many of the leading left leaning senior officials, Leoncio Evasco Jr. is still at the center of power in Malacañang Palace.
We must bear in mind, however, that although the President has sympathized with the NDF on occasion, he is a man with a contradictory personality. He is very capable of changing positions without any problems. Some would even say that he is more to the right than anything else. We will simply have to see which side of his personality will take over with regard to his on-and-off desire to strike a peace deal with the NDF. For communist leader Jose Maria Sison, who is now approaching 80 years, he will really have to think hard whether he will swallow a bit of his pride in order to resume peace negotiations or tough it out and wait for the next administration.
But that is another three years and further away from realizing his revolutionary dreams. No revolutionary leader would want to leave this world without realizing all or part of his revolutionary objectives.
The most cruel thing that can happen to Joma Sison is to depart this world empty-handed, having accomplished nothing for his lifelong struggles. He must reassess his position carefully so that a peace deal with the government can be reached. The two gentlemen must keep their sights on the ultimate prize, which is peace.