For the first time in many years, the Ombudsman went out of his sanctuary and denied in public that she is being influenced by Malacanan or political forces. In her signature bombastic tone, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales castigated those in the media particularly those who questioned her decisions in certain cases. "selective justice," people opposing Morales cried. " Sue me. Impeach me", was the dare put forth by Morales.
I thought the Ombudsman is still investigating the alleged complicity of the Binays on the anomalous Makati High school science building? Then, why then, did Morales went out and expressed her thoughts in public? Unwittingly, Morales just prejudged the Binays. Who will now believe her as an "impartial judge"?
Her public rantings just exposed how emotional she is as a person. Do we want someone like her occupying a very sensitive post, a post crucial in our government's efforts to cleanse the bureaucracy of grafters?
Showing posts with label ombudsman conchita carpio-morales. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ombudsman conchita carpio-morales. Show all posts
Friday, July 3, 2015
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Ombudsman: Chief Justice maintains 82 bank accounts with US$ 12 million deposits
Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales sounded like a broken record when she presented a powerpoint presentation which showed Chief Justice Renato Corona reportedly maintaining US$ 12 million in 5 banks abroad. Eighty two accounts were allegedly owned by Corona. The documents which the Ombusman possesses reportedly came from the Anti-Money Laundering Council or AMLC. AMLC is the one authorized by law to conduct an inquiry into questionable bank accounts or deposits being maintained by government officials, both here and abroad.
Defense counsel Serafin Cuevas had a hard time with Morales. Cuevas wanted to elicit some favorable responses from the former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, yet, the octogenerian failed. The Inquirer describes the scene showing Cuevas and Morales as a fight between a feisty witness with that of a subdued interrogator.
Most of the Senators who witnessed the cross examination say that the prosecution scored on this one.
In a text message I received last night from a colleague, Chief Justice Corona says that he will respond to Morales' "bloated amounts" in the right time, indicating that the fight is not yet over.
Last night, rumours circulated that Chief Justice Corona might announce his resignation last night or on Thursday, when he is expected to take the witness stand. Seems like the propaganda machinery has once and again, reared its ugly head.
As an independent observer, I think that it will be a hard one for Corona to prove his innocence before the bar of public opinion this time around. The AMLC has proven its competence and integrity since it first hugged the headlines during the impeachment trial of Estrada. In that trial, domestic bank accounts were the subject of inquiry. Now, it seems that even without the benefit of a court instigated order, the AMLC is now empowered to scrutinize even dollar deposits made by government officials abroad.
The Defense should change its views about this trial. If it uses technicalities to win, the Defense will surely lose its case before the bar of public opinion. There are two sides of this trial: one, a legal one and two, a public one. The most important one is not legal, but public opinion. Even if Corona wins an acquittal, but the acquittal was based on a technicality, he will lose his integrity and will forever suffer doubt before the minds of the people.
The challenge is---how to adequately explain this issue before the court and the people without both thinking that they are being led to a decision based on technical grounds.
Defense counsel Serafin Cuevas had a hard time with Morales. Cuevas wanted to elicit some favorable responses from the former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, yet, the octogenerian failed. The Inquirer describes the scene showing Cuevas and Morales as a fight between a feisty witness with that of a subdued interrogator.
Most of the Senators who witnessed the cross examination say that the prosecution scored on this one.
In a text message I received last night from a colleague, Chief Justice Corona says that he will respond to Morales' "bloated amounts" in the right time, indicating that the fight is not yet over.
Last night, rumours circulated that Chief Justice Corona might announce his resignation last night or on Thursday, when he is expected to take the witness stand. Seems like the propaganda machinery has once and again, reared its ugly head.
As an independent observer, I think that it will be a hard one for Corona to prove his innocence before the bar of public opinion this time around. The AMLC has proven its competence and integrity since it first hugged the headlines during the impeachment trial of Estrada. In that trial, domestic bank accounts were the subject of inquiry. Now, it seems that even without the benefit of a court instigated order, the AMLC is now empowered to scrutinize even dollar deposits made by government officials abroad.
The Defense should change its views about this trial. If it uses technicalities to win, the Defense will surely lose its case before the bar of public opinion. There are two sides of this trial: one, a legal one and two, a public one. The most important one is not legal, but public opinion. Even if Corona wins an acquittal, but the acquittal was based on a technicality, he will lose his integrity and will forever suffer doubt before the minds of the people.
The challenge is---how to adequately explain this issue before the court and the people without both thinking that they are being led to a decision based on technical grounds.
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