The Supreme Court on Monday, September 3, warned former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. of throwing unfounded accusations towards a magistrate whom he called “biased” in the vice presidential poll protest case.
The warning was included in the ruling issued by SC rejecting Marcos’ plea to inhibit Associate Justice Benjamin Caguioa from the poll protest.
Marcos’ plea included accusations that Caguioa is “biased” towards Vice President Ma. Leonor “Leni” Robredo since he was an appointee of former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III in the high court.
“A justice cannot withdraw from a case as a matter of convenience or as a means to avoid controversy,” the Supreme Court stated in its ruling.
Caguioa is one of the Justices in the Supreme Court, which serves as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal of the vice presidential poll recount.
In June 2016, Marcos filed a complaint citing irregularities in the Robredo camp which resulted to his loss in the elections.
Robredo won the vice presidential race in the May 2016 polls with 14,418,817 votes or 263,473 more than Marcos’ 14,155,344 votes.
The recount only covers three provinces of Marcos’ choice – Camarines Sur, Iloilo, and Negros Oriental – as per Rule 65 of the 2010 PET rules.
