To doubt or not to doubt
I haven't written for a long time, in this blog, since there's so many things coming up that made me busy I can't even watch marathons of the TV series I've downloaded. The episodes have piled up and I just need a couple of days to watch so I can catch up.
Anyway, last week I bought the last piece (maybe just for that day, there are more hard bound version left) of the paper back version of the book Shadow of Doubt, Probing the Supreme Court by Maritess Danguilan Vitug. (Paper back costs P475, the hard bound cost P750). I heard about the book as it was kind of controversial when it was launched. A classmate finished reading it and he influenced me a bit into reading it too.
I have the highest respects for the members of the Court and I wanted to know what the book contained that made some Justices unhappy for its release. Interestingly, the writer is not a lawyer. She is a journalist. So I expected that there would be some tough remarks against the Justices, judges, and members of the legal profession who are or who have been in close relations with the present administration. Indeed there are too many hits on these honorable members of the Court and their colleagues in and out of their chambers. I have covered almost half of the book. I can't finish it right away because I read it only during my free time. Surprisingly, Ms. Vitug discussed something that I knew from some source and which I wrote about sometime last year in another domain. Anyway, the writing in Ms. Vitug's book only affirms that such "happening" is true, that I was right, and that the one who used my own writing against me found it offensive that I knew about it. Come on, "connections" is not limited to that earthling.
The Philippine judicial system has its own highs and lows - from the selection of the members of the Supreme Court and inferior courts, to the performance of Justices and judges and even lawyers in the prosecution service. Society is unforgiving for members of the legal profession and it is not hard to criticize this profession for some who understand it less.
One part of the book was about the Justices appointed by the incumbent appointing authority that were found to be erroneous by her critics. For example, the appointment and the eventual recall of the appointment of Mr. Justice Gregory Ong. Citizenship issues arose when he was appointed that lead to his not being an official member of the Supreme Court. Ms. Vitug stressed that Justice Ong failed his Criminal Procedure class in San Beda College of Law when he was still a law student. She kind of questioned the positions of Ong as prosecutor, Judge and Justice of the Sandiganbayan because of such failed mark in Crimpro. (I passed Crim Pro in San Beda with flying colors.) It was as if she was making the point that such failure in Criminal Procedure meant that Ong was not fit to handle criminal cases. For a law student, failure in a subject does not mean that the student can no longer be an expert in that field. When we fail, we study harder to learn the lesson. Add to that, failing in SBC law does not necessarily mean the student is dumb or that he does not understand the subject. (I do not have to discuss the system in SBC) This is one point I did not actually like in the book.
As to the revelations (revelations since they were new to me) about the character of some of the Justices, I was shocked upon reading those. It appears that these people really do know how to appear innocent. Well that makes them wise men - wise enough to conceal what they think could destroy them.
(to be continued...)
Anyway, last week I bought the last piece (maybe just for that day, there are more hard bound version left) of the paper back version of the book Shadow of Doubt, Probing the Supreme Court by Maritess Danguilan Vitug. (Paper back costs P475, the hard bound cost P750). I heard about the book as it was kind of controversial when it was launched. A classmate finished reading it and he influenced me a bit into reading it too.
I have the highest respects for the members of the Court and I wanted to know what the book contained that made some Justices unhappy for its release. Interestingly, the writer is not a lawyer. She is a journalist. So I expected that there would be some tough remarks against the Justices, judges, and members of the legal profession who are or who have been in close relations with the present administration. Indeed there are too many hits on these honorable members of the Court and their colleagues in and out of their chambers. I have covered almost half of the book. I can't finish it right away because I read it only during my free time. Surprisingly, Ms. Vitug discussed something that I knew from some source and which I wrote about sometime last year in another domain. Anyway, the writing in Ms. Vitug's book only affirms that such "happening" is true, that I was right, and that the one who used my own writing against me found it offensive that I knew about it. Come on, "connections" is not limited to that earthling.
The Philippine judicial system has its own highs and lows - from the selection of the members of the Supreme Court and inferior courts, to the performance of Justices and judges and even lawyers in the prosecution service. Society is unforgiving for members of the legal profession and it is not hard to criticize this profession for some who understand it less.
One part of the book was about the Justices appointed by the incumbent appointing authority that were found to be erroneous by her critics. For example, the appointment and the eventual recall of the appointment of Mr. Justice Gregory Ong. Citizenship issues arose when he was appointed that lead to his not being an official member of the Supreme Court. Ms. Vitug stressed that Justice Ong failed his Criminal Procedure class in San Beda College of Law when he was still a law student. She kind of questioned the positions of Ong as prosecutor, Judge and Justice of the Sandiganbayan because of such failed mark in Crimpro. (I passed Crim Pro in San Beda with flying colors.) It was as if she was making the point that such failure in Criminal Procedure meant that Ong was not fit to handle criminal cases. For a law student, failure in a subject does not mean that the student can no longer be an expert in that field. When we fail, we study harder to learn the lesson. Add to that, failing in SBC law does not necessarily mean the student is dumb or that he does not understand the subject. (I do not have to discuss the system in SBC) This is one point I did not actually like in the book.
As to the revelations (revelations since they were new to me) about the character of some of the Justices, I was shocked upon reading those. It appears that these people really do know how to appear innocent. Well that makes them wise men - wise enough to conceal what they think could destroy them.
(to be continued...)
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