The character of CJ Corona

AMADO P. MACASAET

‘What Chief Justice Renato C. Corona is doing and may continue to do tells a lot about his character. None of it tells anything about his intellect.’

IT is not an impeachable offense. In fact, it is hardly an offense. But what Chief Justice Renato C. Corona is doing and may continue to do tells a lot about his character. None of it tells anything about his intellect.

The Chief Justice has denied the new members of the Court, those appointed by President Aquino - the offices they are entitled to. They are working in the corridors of the Highest Court of the land.

There should be 15 offices in the Court. There are 15 members. We need not say that the rooms of those who retired are vacant. Why can’t the Chief Justice give the offices to the new jurists?

The new members of the Court are not demanding that they be given offices. They probably knew even much earlier that Mr. Corona is personal on all matters that affect his interest.

He knows that he is the first and final authority in the Court. He reacts to everything that he believes may tend to strengthen the hand of President Aquino in his impeachment trial.

But he has no word about our report that he and his wife, Cristina Roco, bought two apartments in the Fort. We have the documents.

The latest fed to us is that their daughter Cherrie and her husband Francis Salgado are residing in San Francisco. But in their names is a huge home rising in La Vista in Quezon City.

The construction of the home is said to be under the direct supervision of Mrs. Corona who, with her husband used to own a big lot in the same expensive place. I would not allow my mother to oversee the construction of my own home. I have to do it myself and with my wife at that.

That’s the reason there is now the lingering question: Who is the beneficial owner of the home. Does it belong to the couple’s daughter Cherrie and her husband Francis Salgado?

Or is it beneficially owned by the Chief Justice and his wife? No evidence on either because we haven’t found time to check with Quezon City Hall.

The Chief Justice brought his wife with him to the Supreme Court during a rally he and his spokesman organized Tuesday last week. In a manner of speaking he brought "evidence" against himself.

Mrs. Corona is accused of having abused her position, made possible by her husband, when she was chairman of the John Hay Management Corp. She refused to sign the minutes of the board meeting. The board of JHMC passed a resolution demanding her ouster. Instead of paying heed, President Arroyo asked the board to resign. Mrs. Corona was operating in Quezon City but her office is supposed to be in Baguio where JHMC is located.

Does Mr. Corona suspect people did not know about that anomaly? We do. Many others do. The Chief Justice violated the Judicial Code of Conduct that does not allow a jurist to lend himself to the appointment or accepting favors from the President, of all people.

Again that tells a lot of Mr. Corona’s character, not his intellect or integrity or an effort to preserve the independence of the Supreme Court he now accuses President Arroyo of destroying by his impeachment.

Now, Mrs. Corona herself is facing investigation. Her husband brought it upon her. That again, tells a lot about the character of the Chief Justice.

In probably all occasions that arise, Mr. Corona talks about the law outside the Court.

We cannot say outside his ponencia because we do not know much about the rulings, if there are any, that he penned.

We maintain that a jurist, particularly the Chief Justice should not talk about the law outside his ponencia or dissent. That tells us a lot about the character of the man.

The Chief Justice dissents, mostly in cases that involved the politics or fate of Gloria Arroyo. Being canine loyal to her, it would have been his duty to write a biting dissent.

He does not write dissents but he dissents by saying "I join the dissent of Justice" so and so.

That tells a lot of the man’s intellect. He does not want to show it. He seems to be too lazy to write a dissent. Or he simply cannot write one that can convince people that the majority is wrong. But he knows the majority is right even when it is wrong. In fact, it was the wrong interpretation of the Constitution that made him Chief Justice.

That, most of all, tells his whole character.

We have information that the Chief Justice hired two public relations consultants, one of whom is an investor in a daily newspaper. It is extremely difficult to defend the case or cause of Mr. Corona.

But, as we all know, money talks. It can talk for Mr. Corona through his spokesmen. He has three of them. The first is Midas Marquez, court administrator and spokesman. The two public relations men are crisis or damage-control experts. Let us see how good they are in the case of Mr. Corona.

To paraphrase Alexander Pope one more time, Chief Justice Corona is in disgrace with men’s eyes (not fortune as the famous British essayist says). Heaven is deaf to him. He must look upon himself and curse his fate.

He does not do either. That, too, is his character.