LEADERS of the three branches of the government on Tuesday created the Judiciary-Executive-Legislative Advisory and Consultative Council (Jelac) to strengthen the judiciary and promote the rule of law.
The Jelac was created with the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) among the country's top leaders -- President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Senate President Manuel VIllar Jr., Speaker Prospero Nograles Jr., and Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Vice President Noli de Castro, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan, House Majority Leader Arthur Defensor Sr., and Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna signed the MOA as witnesses.
The Jelac is composed of nine members, with the President as chairperson. The members are the Vice President, the Senate President, the Speaker, the Chief Justice, a Cabinet member, a senator, a congressman, and a Supreme Court (SC) justice.
The council's mandate is to identify and solve the problems affecting the rule of law, the budget of the judiciary, its infrastructure requirements, creation of new positions and filling of vacancies, career development program, compensation and security of judicial officials, security of tenure and other related matters.
Pangilinan said government is working on a 20 percent increase in the budget of the judiciary in 2009, adding that the third branch of government got only .08 percent of the P1.2 trillion budget even if it is a "co-equal" branch.
He said the Jelac created a sub-committee which he chaired to look into the salaries of personnel in the judiciary and those of the prosecutors, solicitor general, and government lawyers and corporate counsels.
"The judiciary is supposed to be the beneficiary of the Jelac," he said.
However, Pangilinan said the Jelac will not be used as a forum to tackle cases pending before the SC.
Puno and Villar said despite the Jelac creation, the Senate and the high court would remain independent of Malacañang.
Puno said the SC will continue its program to address the problem of killings and disappearances. He said the high court would push next month its program to enhance the socioeconomic rights of the more disadvantaged sectors of society.
"The cycle of protection of human rights is in the high priority list of the judiciary," he said.
Villar, for his part, said the Senate will continue with its investigations into anomalous transactions in the government. "We believe that the investigations will help the country," he said.
He said the opposition-led Senate cooperates with Malacañang, as evidenced by the fact that it passed eight of the nine priority bills asked by President Arroyo.
The President, before the signing of the MOA, said, "separation (of powers) does not mean isolation" because there should be consultation and cooperation among the three co-equal branches of government for the sake of national interest and welfare of all Filipinos.
"We need Judicial-Executive-Legislative cooperation in other priority thrusts. Our drive towards development will grind to a halt without the rule of law as its foundation," she said.
Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. said the Jelac would be a good venue to discuss equal opportunities to justice and updating laws that are already obsolete. (JMR/Sunnex)
