Press Release
January 30, 2008

KIKO CONDEMNS KILLING OF ACCUSED INSIDE MANILA RTC,
URGES IMMEDIATE CONVENING OF JUDICIAL, EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE ADVISORY COUNCIL (JELAC) TO ADDRESS JUDICIARY BUDGETARY AND SECURITY WOES

"With a limited budget, judicial independence will not be possible..." --- Kiko

The proposal to create the JELAC is the brainchild of Sen. Kiko Pangilinan and was first raised by him in a speech delivered during the summit on extra-judicial killings last July 2007.

Kiko was chair of Senate Justice Committee in the 12th Congress, sits as ex-officio member of the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) representing the Senate.

The Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) creating JELAC is awaiting signature of PGMA, those who have already signed are the following Senate President Manuel Villar, Speaker Jose de Venecia and Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno.

"The recent spate of violence directed at the courts and our judges showed that since 1999... 15 judges have been killed, 14 of the deaths happened under the Arroyo administration." Kiko adds.

Yesterday, former Misamis Occidental Mayor Reynaldo Yap was killed inside a courtroom in Manila while attending the murder case filed against him. Yap had been charged for allegedly killing a political rival, Victorino Cebedo sometime in 1992.

"We must look at how we can increase the conviction rates of our courts. Take the case of former Misamis Occidental mayor who was gunned down yesterday... the case happened in 1992... the case remained pending for 10 years now, had the case been decided 5 years ago whether an acquittal or a conviction the murder could very well have been avoided... Only when we punish more and punish swiftly will there be genuine respect for the rule of law and obedience to the same. Today the battle cry of would be criminals and syndicates is 'we can get away with it anyway' and hence are emboldened to transgress the law at will. We must raise for example the conviction rates in the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan from some 20 percent where it is today to 70 to 80 percent (HK level) in the next 5 to 7 years. When only 2 or 3 out of ten cases end up in conviction then many are able to go scot free while only a few are punished. We must punish more and convict swiftly," Kiko said.

"Apart from punishing more, we likewise need to look at resolving cases more swiftly. Data from the Office of the Court Administrator reveals that the average lifespan of a case pending in our courts is 6 years. The period is too long. Justice delayed is justice denied... We must find ways to reduce the length of time that a case is filed and resolved. We must find a way to reduce the average case life from 6 years to say 2 to 3 years in the next 5 to 7 years," Kiko added.

In August 2007, CJ Puno issued a memorandum which seeks to provide an interim security procedure to improve security for justices and judges pending the issuance of a comprehensive security protocol for the lower courts. The new security protocol designates two focal persons, whom all justices and judges should immediately contact in case of threats to their security or safety.

"The judiciary only gets a measly .8 percent of the entire national budget... the overall solution to the woes of the judiciary is an increase in its share in the national budget... with a limited budget, judicial independence will not be possible... we must arrest the deteriorating state of our justice system." Kiko ended.

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