The highest court of the land has spoken.
The Supreme Court (SC) has shot down (denied) opposition
senator Leila De Lima’s petition seeking for the issuance of a writ of habeas
data against incumbent and sitting President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
In a 22 page
resolution the SC decided to turn down the said petition “on the ground that
respondent Rodrigo Roa Duterte as the incumbent President of the Philippines is
immune from suit during his incumbency.”
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“As the framers of
our Constitution understood it, which view has been upheld by relevant
jurisprudence, the President is immune from suit during his tenure,” read the
resolution that was penned by retired Chief Justice Lucas Bersamin.
In De Lima’s
petition, she asked the High Court to stop the President and his subordinates
from gathering personal information about her private life and delete
illegally-obtained pieces of private information.
The senator filed
the petition in 2016 after Duterte, in retaliation to her criticisms, “issued a
number of public statements against Sen. De LIma, including denunciations of
her corruption and immorality.”
In disagreeing with De
Lima’s argument the Supreme Court said that presidential
immunity can’t apply to Duterte since his statements were made not as part of
his discharge of his presidential duties and also because because the
proceedings for the writ of habeas data do not involve the determination of
administrative, civil, or criminal liabilities.
The SC pointed out
that “immunity applies regardless the personal or official nature of the acts
complained of have rendered their disagreement moot or academic.”
“Again, we remind
that immunity does not hinge on the nature of the suit. In short, presidential
immunity is not intended to immunize the President from liability or
accountability,” the high tribunal added.
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