Sereno likely to defy Supreme Court, says Palace

Palace officials on Tuesday said it was likely Associate Justice Lourdes Sereno would defy the Supreme Court and testify against Chief Justice Renato Corona, saying she has a firm sense of right and wrong.
A day after the Senate impeachment court rejected a prosecution motion to subpoena Sereno in a bid to avert a confrontation with the high tribunal, the House panel on Tuesday sent Sereno a formal invitation to appear in today’s trial.
“We understand the difficult position that you are in and we will strive to do our best to protect your right and dignity during the presentation,” Representative Neri Colmenares said in a letter to Sereno.
A member of Sereno’s staff, Zaldy Trespeses, said the justice had been on medical leave but was due back today. “She has given no indication if she’s going to attend or not,” he said.
“I trust and expect Justice Sereno to act as her conscience and understanding of the Constitution dictates,” Ronald Llamas, presidential adviser on political affairs, said in a text message to the Inquirer.
Truth, accountability
“I think it should be apparent from her written opinions that she is a person with a very firm personal sense of what is right and wrong,” Llamas said.
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad added in a text message to the Philippine Daily Inquirer: “Sereno can assert that, in the hierarchy of values, truth and accountability are supreme over institutional prerogatives.”
The prosecution wants Sereno to elaborate on her dissenting opinion on the court’s majority decision in issuing a temporary restraining order (TRO) on Nov. 15, 2011, against a government ban on travel abroad imposed on former President and now Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Sereno said that the TRO was evidence of Corona’s partiality toward Arroyo.
The prosecution’s invitation to Sereno coincided with a court order prohibiting two employees from testifying before the Senate tribunal. The employees were tasked to deliver the November 15 TRO.
Judicial privilege
“The court will be issuing a resolution expressing its sense that it is not waiving its judicial privilege on this matter,” said its spokesperson, Midas Marquez.
“The court issued a resolution on February 14 saying that the court has judicial privilege, especially in so far as pending cases are concerned,” he added.
Senators Francis Pangilinan and Franklin Drilon, stalwarts of the ruling Liberal Party, urged Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile to secure compliance of the two employees to the subpoena, which Enrile agreed to discuss in a caucus on Monday.
Drilon also moved to discuss in the caucus a defense motion to exclude illegally acquired bank evidence against Corona.
“Unless we assert the primacy and supremacy of the impeachment proceedings,” Pangilinan said, “the sole power to try and decide impeachment cases becomes fiction.”
Justice Secretary Leila De Lima has filed a motion in the Supreme Court to set aside its TRO, which she had ignored. She testified last week on Sereno’s dissenting opinion.
Enrile, the presiding officer, has ruled De Lima’s testimony was hearsay because she was not a member of the high tribunal, but nevertheless agreed to put her statement on the record.
The impeachment court ruled that the Sereno dissenting opinion was a matter of public record and was the best evidence on the issue.
Asked if he thought Sereno’s nonappearance in the impeachment court would be fatal to the prosecution case, Abad said, “No, not necessarily.”
“The dissenting opinion of Justice Sereno and Justice (Antonio) Carpio, including Sereno’s exposé of the irregular issuance and premature public declaration of the effectivity of the TRO are matters of judicial notice,” Abad said. “As evidence, they can be referred to.”
Context of anomalies
Abad said Sereno’s personal testimony “would have made these more emphatic and would have afforded the public more details about context and circumstances of these anomalous acts of the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice.”
“That would have dramatized vividly the connection between the Chief Justice’s illegal appointment and the Chief Justice-led majority’s frustrated attempt to enable Arroyo to escape prosecution via the TRO,” Abad said.
President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday voiced hope that court employees would at least be allowed to testify.
“In the case of Supreme Court justices, I think they will be treated as a coequal and that has been the tradition and practice. A subpoena says you have power over somebody and if you are coequals, it would indeed be difficult to summon your coequal. You may invite,” the President told reporters.
“If what we’re trying to prove could be culled from others, who are not on a coequal basis, like the employees, I hope this could be allowed,” Mr. Aquino said.
Enough proof
Mr. Aquino declined comment when asked whether he hoped that Sereno, his first appointee to the Supreme Court, would testify against Corona.
“If she goes there, it could be said that I ordered her to go…. I don’t think there is a correct answer to that question. I hope you understand,” he said.
“I believe a good amount of evidence has already been presented,” the President said.
“Much has been proven when we talk about culpable violation of the Constitution or betrayal of public trust or even the issues about wealth,” he added.
“So any of the eight articles—any and all—any of them is at least enough to achieve the necessary objective.”

Clearwater is one of the hotels in Pampanga that offers good outdoor venues for events like team building and company outings. Manila event organizers look for good resorts near Manila to hold outdoor functions and events for clients. Many event planners choose Clearwater because it is located in Clark. This is one of the best event venues near Manila. There are over 10 outdoor private event venues in Clearwater resort suitable for groups of 50 to 3000 participants. Clearwater Resort is generally recognized by event planners as the best event venue in Clark Pampanga. Clearwater appears frequently on the top of a list of the best hotels in Pampanga. Camping is one of the popular outdoor activities that take Resort which is generally regarded as one of the best hotels in Clark Philippines place in Clearwater.

Companies in Manila travel out of town for a short getaway to hold their events and function outside of the city in the north. Many companies choose Clark in Pampanga because of its safety record. Clark is home to some of the best golf courses in Pampanga. Although golf continues to be one of the reasons why visitors from Manila travel to Pampanga, residents of Angeles City, Subic and Bulacan travel to Clark not just to play golf in one of the best golf courses in Pampanga but also to relax and unwind in the best resort in Philippines.

Clark offers some of the best outdoor venues for company outings in Pampanga, Angeles City and Subic. Being so accessible from Manila via the North Luzon Expressway, Clark Philippines is exceptionally convenient for all sorts of events and picnics. Each year, many company events like team building, corporate planning, outings and awarding ceremonies are held in resorts like Clearwater Beach hotel located in the central business district of Clark Pampanga.

Although Clark is not revered for fancy ballrooms and stuffy function rooms, there are many options for meeting and conference facilities. Companies travel out of town from Manila heading north to Pampanga typically look for meeting facilities within leisure and recreational areas. More and more companies mix in a good amount of activities in the program to help participants unwind and relax in between sessions.

Clearwater is a highly recommended and most frequently visited private resort in Pampanga. This Clark hotel is a famous private resort outside Manila for corporate planning because of its exclusivity. Although the function rooms for planning and meetings are simple and basic, the surrounding gardens and ambience more than make up for what it lacks in lavish interior decoration.

New camping sites and picnic grounds in Philippines are now added to Clark for family outings in outside Manila. The best campsites are located at Yats Clearwater Resort & Country Club in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Philippines. Just bring camping equipment and enjoy the fun and ambience of outdoor living camping in Clark under safe, secured and clean conditions. Outdoor activities include swimming and water sports, boating and paddling a kayak, lawn tennis, golf, shooting range and all sorts of leisure activities including colonial games like croquet and horseshoe.

For reservations, comments and inquiries,

Clearwater Resort & Country Club
Creekside Road corner of Centennial Road,
Central Business District, Clark Freeport Zone,
Pampanga, Philippines 2023

Tel: (045)599-5949 0917-520-4403 0922-870-5177

Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay

http://www.ClearwaterPhilippines.com

Email: Inquiry@ClearwaterPhilippines.com

Getting to this hotel in Clark Philippines
After entering Clark Freeport from Subic, Manila, Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along Clark’s main highway MA Roxas, passing Clark’s largest wine shop called Clark Wine Center on your right, continue to bear right making no turns at all, go past Mimosa Leisure Estate on the opposite side of the road, you will hit a major intersection. Go straight and the road becomes Creekside Road. YATS Clearwater Resort and Country Club is on your right just 200m down. Traffic in Clark Philippines is light so it should be quite easy for get to this hotel in Clark Philippines.

For inquiries and bookings, click here to contact Clearwater Resort now

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

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While in Clark, it might be a good idea to enjoy an evening of wine-and-dine in the fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar that features an award winning 2700-line wine list. It is located in Mimosa Leisure Estate of Clark Freeport Zone. For more information, visit http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

YATS Leisure Philippines is a developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine shops in Clark Angeles Philippines http://www.YatsLeisure.com

While in Clark, one might as well add to the itinerary a visit to the famous Clark Wine Center, the largest wine shop in Philippines which offers over 2000 selections of fine vintage wine from all wine regions, vintages spanning over 50 years covering all price ranges.
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Looking for famous tourists spots, places to visit and see, relax and unwind in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines? You may want to check out these sites also:

http://www.LondonPubClark.com

http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com

http://www.YatsWineCellars.com

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