38 Appeals Judges Bow to Aquino, Agree to Resign

The 38 judges of the Philippine Court of Appeals, the nation’s second-highest court, agreed Tuesday to resign in order to give President Corazon Aquino a free hand in shaping the judiciary, which has played a pivotal role in political life here.

Justice Minister Neptali Gonzales announced that the intermediate court has indicated to Aquino its readiness for a mass resignation. Officials at Aquino headquarters later said that 30 of the judges have formally resigned and that the other eight have agreed to do so.

Meanwhile, Jovito Salonga, head of the commission assigned by Aquino to track down the assets of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos and his business associates, told a press conference that his group hopes to recover as much as $5 billion to $10 billion in “ill-gotten wealth” amassed by Marcos, his family and close associates.

Salonga said the new commission, which has no staff or offices yet, has already issued three orders blocking the withdrawal of certain funds from Philippine banks and has taken control of the Manila Electric Co., a power company that Marcos took over when he declared martial law in 1972.

The Aquino forces hope that they will be given the same chance to fill all the seats on the 15-member Supreme Court as the resignation of the appeals judges will give them with the Court of Appeals.

Last week, Aquino called upon the entire Supreme Court to step down, but so far, many of the 11 sitting justices--there have been four vacancies--are holding on to their posts, pointing to guarantees of tenure under the Philippine constitution.

All the members of both the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals were appointed by Marcos during his two decades of rule here. Five of the current Supreme Court justices were classmates of Marcos at the University of the Philippines School of Law in the 1930s.

Packed with Marcos supporters, the Supreme Court provided crucial help for him during political crises here:

--It upheld arrests of opposition leaders by the Philippine armed forces.

--It blocked the introduction of important evidence against the then-commander of the armed forces, Gen. Fabian C. Ver, when Ver was on trial on charges of conspiring to assassinate Aquino’s husband, Benigno S. Aquino Jr. Ver and the other defendants were acquitted.

--And, last December, it approved Marcos’ call for the quick presidential election he thought he wanted.

‘Change or Clean Out’

Justice Minister Gonzales told the Associated Press that an overhaul of the judiciary is justified because the Philippine people are demanding that Aquino and her supporters “change or clean out the government.”

Gonzales has been arguing for several days that the new government is a revolutionary one that is not bound by the legal framework set up under Marcos. But he and other Aquino supporters have been trying to arrange judicial resignations that would avoid a constitutional confrontation over whether Aquino is bound to leave the Marcos appointees in office.

So far, the Supreme Court justices most willing to quit have been those who stand the best chance of being reappointed by Aquino.

The Philippine News Agency reported Tuesday that Justice Claudio Teehankee, 67, the justice who administered the oath of office to Aquino during last week’s political crisis, has agreed to resign. Teehankee, who frequently dissented from pro-Marcos court decisions, is thought to be in the running to be named chief justice by Aquino.

Documentary Evidence

Meanwhile, Salanga told the press conference that his Commission on Good Government has documentary evidence showing how Marcos’ business associates acquired property on his behalf. The figures cited by Salonga--$5 billion to $10 billion in “ill-gotten wealth”--were similar to estimates used this week by other supporters of Aquino.

Salonga defined “ill-gotten wealth” as money acquired by Philippine officials or businessmen “through use of influence or the abuse of power.” One example, he said, would be money or property acquired when public funds are diverted to private use.

The new minister also said his commission will scrutinize cases in which an individual’s assets seem out of proportion to his salary or other earnings. It would be considered an indication of possible diversion of funds, he said, “if my income is 10,000 pesos (about $500) and I have property worth $300 million.”

Aquino’s order giving Salonga’s commission powers to carry out its duties also confiscated the Marcos family’s domestic bank accounts and property.