SC Justice Ynares-Santiago denies pocketing P10-M payoff

Supreme Court Associate Justice Consuelo Ynares-Santiago on Monday denied claims that she accepted a P10-million payoff that was allegedly discovered by her secretary several months ago. In a statement, the justice dismissed the allegations as “blatant lies clearly aimed at smearing and maligning my character and person, and the integrity of the judiciary, which I have been faithfully serving for 34 years now." The report about the payoff first came out last week in a column written by Malaya newspaper publisher Jake Macasaet. He said a lady justice at the high court allegedly fired her secretary last March after the latter mistakenly opened one of five gift boxes delivered to the magistrate. The secretary thought the boxes contained perishables, but found out that these contained money. Macasaet claimed the boxes contained P10 million. Online magazine Newsbreak on Monday identified the justice in question as Ynares-Santiago and the secretary as Daisy Cecilia Muñoz-Delis. Newsbreak said the alleged payoff might have something to do with two decisions that Ynares-Santiago penned: the dismissal of the criminal case against Henry Go, former chairman and president of the Philippine International Air Terminals Corp, and the Maysilo land dispute. Ynares-Santiago suspected that the propaganda against her “are parts of concerted attempts to influence the high court in deciding a big land dispute in Quezon City now pending before the SC." “Nevertheless, I leave the determination of these to the investigation I have requested. I also reserve my right to file the appropriate criminal charges against those responsible for these malicious accusations," she said. The Supreme Court will tackle the issue hurled against Ynares-Santiago on Tuesday in an en banc session. Supreme Court spokesman, Atty. Jose Midas Marquez said it was Ynares-Santiago herself who asked the high court to conduct an investigation on the accusations against her. He said Ynares-Santiago felt she was the one being alluded to in the reports since she was the only lady justice who had a secretary named Cecilia. “(The reports were) disturbing...damaging the court's relentless efforts to cleanse the judiciary," Marquez said. - GMANews.TV