Speaker wants more local courts to speed up judicial process

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez on Wednesday stressed the need to beef up the scope and functions of regional and municipal trial courts and direct all appeals to the Supreme Court instead to the Court of Appeals.

Alvarez lamented that the judiciary is the slowest among the three co-equal branches of the Philippine government.

"Ang tagal makakuha ng hustisya sa bansang ito. Eh walang nangyayari e," he said.

"Ang kaso, sa regional trial court, pinakamahina limang taon. Pagdating sa Court of Appeals, pinakamahina limang taon. Sa Supreme Court, ganun din. E bakit hindi na-aaddress ang problema?" he added.

Alvarez noted that one solution to this problem is increasing the number of regional and municipal trial courts nationwide, where most cases are pending, and establish more specialized courts that will handle specific cases.

"Anong solusyon? Gumawa tayo ng maraming korte, regional trial courts at municipal trial courts," he said.

"Damihan yung regional trial courts, damihan yung municipal courts, magkaroon ka ng specialized courts. Merong korte na mag-handle ng civil cases, merong korte na mag-handle ng criminal cases. Tapos kung maraming drug-related cases, meron ding korte na mag-handle nun," he added.

The Speaker also suggested to make decisions at the regional trial courts "final and executory" so cases need not be referred to the Court of Appeals.

"Gawin mong final and executory 'yung decision ng regional trial courts. Wala nang Court of Appeals. I-appeal na lang kung ano 'yung nakasulat sa Constitution na appealable sa Supreme Court, 'yun na lang ang pupunta sa Supreme Court," he said.

Alvarez pointed out that the Court of Appeals was not part of the list of courts found in the Constitution.

"Dinagdagan lang natin yung judicial process. E pwede namang dito pa lang sa regional trial courts, tapos na, na-serve mo na yung justice sa tao. So compliant na tayo doon sa early disposition of cases na minamandato ng Constitution," he said.

"Kasi ang nangyayari, ginagamit lang 'yan ng mga abogado na delaying tactics. Imbes na ma-serve mo agad yung justice doon sa complainants, pupunta pa sila sa Court of Appeals. Madalas nakakaturuan pa doon," said the Speaker, who is also a lawyer.

Alvarez had warned that Congress can abolish the Court of Appeals amid the House of Representatives’ clash with the court over the then-detention of six Ilocos Norte provincial government employees involved in its inquiry into the local government's alleged use of tobacco excise tax shares to purchase motor vehicles. —ALG, GMA News