Is Roan Libarios speaking for the IBP or for high court? | Inquirer Opinion

Is Roan Libarios speaking for the IBP or for high court? | Inquirer Opinion

"x x x.

So how could Libarios pretend to have the entire membership of the IBP—the largest association of lawyers in the country—speak with one voice against the impeachment? Apparently, the lack of consensus has caused prestigious legal groups, like the Philconsa as a proper guardian of the Charter, to judiciously refrain from embroiling themselves in the controversy. Has Libarios been specifically authorized, in a special referendum, for instance, by the various IBP chapters nationwide to articulate and aggressively pursue in the media, including advertisements, a position directly assailing that of 188 lawmakers of the House and the president of the Republic?

While Libarios is telling us that the Judiciary should not be unwisely attacked—a courageous and laudable act—he should be cautioned also not to allow the IBP to be unduly dragged into entangling legal adventures, which could sow dissension within it and tarnish the integrity of the men and women running it.

Dissenting, another legal group, the Philippine Bar Association (PBA), views the impeachment against Corona “as the constitutionally ordained process which epitomizes the Rule of Law at work,” and pleads to let this process “not be undermined by any quarter.” (Inquirer, 12/23/11)


—NELSON D. LAVIÑA,
retired ambassador,

x x x."