SC may rule on Bangit appointment row
By Benjamin B. Pulta 06/16/2010 Moot or not, a ruling may be handed down by the Supreme Court (SC) in a case challenging the constitutionality of the appointment of Gen. Delfin Bangit as chief of staff the Armed Forces of the Philippines despite his recent decision to retire early. Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez said the SC is set to rule on a petition filed by the Philippine Bar Association (PBA) led by former Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo which sought to nullify Bangit’s appointment, along with two other top military officials —Philippine Army commanding general Lt. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu and AFP-NCR commander Rear Adm. Feliciao Angue — for alleged violation of the constitutional ban on midnight appointments. Marquez said the case was among those taken up in the Court session presided over by Chief Justice Renato Corona yesterday . Bangit figured in a public and unfriendly exchange of words with President -elect Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III over his appointment . “The Court requires petitioner (PBA) to submit reply on the comment of the respondents filed through Office of the Solicitor General before it submits the case for resolution,” he explained. The lawyers’ group is given 10 days to comply with the order. The OSG, in its comment, defended the assailed appointments and argued that there was no violation of the Charter because General Bangit and the other two were appointed before the midnight appointments ban took effect. In a petition filed last May 4, the PBA alleged that the promotions of General Bangit and the two other officials violated the ban on midnight appointments under Section 15 Article VII of the Constitution.... MORE Source: The Daily Tribune URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/headlines/20100616hed4.html |
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