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CEBU CITY, Philippines – Another Regional Trial Court (RTC) judge has waived his monthly allowance from the provincial government.
He requested Executive Judge Meinrado Paredes to delete his name from the list of judges who receive the P6,000 in monthly allowance from the Capitol, according to Judge Gabriel Ingles, Palace of Justice spokesman.
Ingles, however, declined to identify the judge who, he said, made up his mind to give up his allowance in mid-December.
“Di lang kuno siya gusto i-identify kay dili siya gusto interbyuhon sa media. (He said that he doesn't want to be identified because he doesn't want to be interviewed by the media),” Ingles said.
Ingles, presiding judge of branch 58, said that the waiver did not include the P5,000 in monthly allowance that judges received from Cebu City Hall.
The judge was not handling any case that involved the province but just wanted to give up his allowance in order to abide by his “principles.”
Ingles stressed that judicial independence is important.
If a judge rules in favor of that local government unit, the public might think that it was because of the allowance given by the LGU.
“Public perception is very important,” Ingles said.
Executive Judge Paredes said he was not able to delete the judge's name from the roster because since December, he had not signed the payroll of judges who received monthly stipend from the Capitol.
He said that he used to sign the said payroll.
“Bag-o lang gyud ni nga wala nako ka-sign. (This is the first time that I was not able to sign the payroll),” he said.
The province may have decided to deposit the allowances of judges directly in their ATM without passing through the executive judge.
Since he did not sign the payroll, Paredes suggested that the judge should write a letter to Capito that he wanted to waive his allowance.
Ingles waived both his monthly allowances from the Cebu City government and from the provincial government in support of Judge Bienvinido Saniel whose name was deleted in the roster of judges who are receiving monthly allowances from the province.
When Saniel learned about the removal of his name, he wrote to Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, asking her not to restore his name in the list.
Saniel was the judge who dismissed the petition filed by the province questioning the authority of Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeńa to appoint directors of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District.
Judge Paredes also waived his allowance from the provincial government. /Correspondent Ador Mayol
