PIMENTEL BACKS CALL FOR RESTORING P4 BILLION CUT IN JUDICIARY BUDGET NEXT YEAR

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Nene" Q. Pimentel, Jr. (PDP-Laban) today assured officials and employees of the judiciary that he will support their appeal for the restoration of the P4 billion that was cut by the House of Representatives from the proposed P14.4 billion budget of the judicial branch for next year.

Pimentel said he saw no rhyme nor reason for the hefty budget cut since the judiciary needs more funds to hire additional judges and cope with increasing number of cases.

In fact, he noted that many courthouses and rooms in different parts of the country remain in dilapidated condition while the modernization program of the judiciary in terms of computerization has been hampered by chronic lack of funds.

"We in the Senate will do our best to restore the cut in the judiciary budget if not wholly, at least substantially," Pimentel said.

"The judiciary is one of the government agencies to which the people go for help when they suffer injustice and when their rights are violated. How can the judiciary come to their rescue and perform its duties competently if it is always short of funds?"

Pimentel expressed apprehension that the Supreme Court's plan to fill up 200 vacant positions for judges in the regional trial courts will be snagged if the budget cut is not reinstated.

"As members of Congress, we should not allow a situation where the judiciary, as the last recourse of victims of injustice, will be crippled in discharging its functions to insufficient funds. That will only aggravate the country's troubles."

He said the judiciary deserves additional funding to fulfill its commitment in resolving thousands of cases of extra-judicial killings, forced disappearances and other forms of human rights violations.

In response to Malacañang's request, up to 99 Regional Trial Courts were designated as special courts last year to exclusively handle extra-judicial killings of leftist activists, journalists, judges and law practitioners.

Noting that the P4 billion was excised by the House from the 2008 judiciary budget without any explanation, Pimentel said it would seem that the third independent and co-equal branch of government is being punished, instead of rewarded, for its initiatives in decisively addressing the scourge of political and media killings, since this appear to be a slap on the face of the executive branch which is under fire for its inept and lackluster efforts to solve the problem.

He said Chief Justice Reynato Puno forcefully drove home the message when he deplored that they could not possibly live up to the people's clamor for a world-class judiciary if they all that they would receive is a "Third World budget."

By restoring the P4 billion budget cut, Pimentel said this will also correct the disturbing impression that Congress is paying lip service to the fiscal autonomy that the judiciary supposedly enjoys under the Constitution.