January 24, 2012 · Posted in: General
Tell me how liberal you want it – Enrile
IMPEACHMENT PRESIDING OFFICER Juan Ponce Enrile tossed to his fellow Senator-Judges the question of just how liberal he should be in the application of the rules of court.
“Ako ay hindi hukom dito sa kaso na ito,” Enrile. “Ako lamang ang inatasan sa ilalim ng Saligang Batas na maging presiding officer.”
“”Sabihin ninyo sa akin bilang hukom at bumubuo ng Senado kung gaano ako magiging liberal para sundin ko ang kagustuhan ninyo,” Enrile added. “Pero hanggang ngayon walang nagsasabi kung gaano kaliberal. Pasyahan ninyo. Kung gusto ninyo, ang bawat objection, ipapasa ko sa inyo ang desisyon.”
1 Response to Tell me how liberal you want it – Enrile
francisco c. castro
January 25th, 2012 at 8:55 am
the danger in this request for a more “liberal” application of the rules is the tendency to be indolent. Indolence means “indifference to pain”. There is pain required in making the effort of being objective and just; one “takes pains” to be true. But there is also the pain of the person accused who remains innocent until proven guilty. Indolence is indifferent to both pains. Indolence will take a “short cut” in the process by looking for the easier path, the path of “no pain”. This path has two immoral principles: 1. the end justifies the means and 2. prove your innocence while you stand guilty. “Liberal” can imply that “any means will do, even if it violates the dignity of the accused”–working too hard to be true and objective is too much of a requirement for the indolent. Trial by publicity is a strategy to make the accused look guilty. “Liberal” can therefore imply that the popularity of the guilt of the accused will be the basis for evaluation. To assume innocence before guilt is too much for the indolent. See then that “liberality” can be synonymous to indolence.