The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday, July 17, called out former chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno over her public statements that “cast aspersions and ill motives” to the Justices in the High Tribunal.
SC warned Sereno to be careful of her statements as “repetition of the same acts will merit a heavier penalty.”
The warning was issued after Sereno repeatedly discussed the merits of case despite the cause order which prohibits Sereno from discussing the case in public while her case is still pending in the tribunal.
“The Court, acting on the show cause order in its May 11, 2018 decision, reprimanded the respondent with a stern warning that a repetition of the same acts will merit a heavier penalty,” the High Tribunal said.
The High Tribunal added that Sereno’s statements “degrade the faith of the people to the Judiciary, and falsely impute ill-motives against the government that it is orchestrating the charges against her.”
“This wrongful actuation exemplify a poor regard for the judicial system and may amount to conduct unbecoming of a Justice and a lawyer,” SC noted.
Meanwhile, Sereno explained that she only defended herself against “numerous false and baseless accusations thrown against her all over the media.”
“No less than the Solicitor General of the Republic himself repeatedly attacked Respondent and publicly discussed the merits of the petition and even made personal attacks on Respondent, not only through the media but also through his personal social media (Twitter) account,” Sereno said.
