Roque's call for Sereno's resignation shows Palace's 'manipulative hand'

Newly-appointed presidential spokesperson Harry Roque's call for Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno to step down from her post shows Malacañang's "manipulative hand" in the impeachment case against her, Akbayan party-list Rep. Tom Villarin said on Monday.

In a message to reporters, Villarin slammed Roque for publicly calling for Sereno's resignation when the House Committee on Justice has yet to discuss the charges against her.

"Is Malacañang conditioning the public’s mind that CJ Sereno is guilty? She was not even allowed to have counsel do a cross-examination of the complainant," he said.

"Now they are in a hurry to convict her through public pressure and using even the Supreme Court’s standing to justify such call," he added.

In a press briefing on Monday, Roque urged Sereno to resign and spare the judiciary from further damage that may come up from the impeachment case.

"So I call upon Chief Justice Sereno to really consider resigning if only to spare the institution from any further damage," he said.

“The best way to protect the institution is to forego with the trial altogether and save the institution from further damage,” he added.

Villarin said Roque's statement is "uncalled for" and "manipulative."

"It begs the question why is Malacañang in a hurry to boot her out. Is there a sinister plot to make the Supreme Court and other democratic institutions beholden to it?" he said.

"Where is due process and a sense of fair play in all of these?" he added.

Villarin reminded the public to be more vigilant as Roque, which he called "the new Malacañang spinmeister," is "spinning devious plots for his lord and master."

Sereno's camp, however, remained firm in saying that the Chief Justice will not step down.

"As previously declared, resignation has never been an option," said lawyer Carlo Cruz, one of Sereno's spokespersons. — BAP, GMA News