Sereno dedicates a poem to Australian nun Patricia Fox

Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Tuesday dedicated a poem to Australian nun Patricia Fox, whom she believed did nothing illegal in her apostolate mission to help the poor in the Philippines.

In a speech at the "Women on Fire" forum she and Fox attended at the Adamson University, Sereno said Fox was shamed for her advocacy to help the poor.

Sereno said she was shamed by the government by way of creating the quo warranto petition she described as a tool that can be used to scare defenders of freedom.

The Chief Justice said she would not heed calls for her resignation, adding that quitting was for cowards.

She warned that voting for the quo warranto to succeed may lead to a dictatorship.

Fox said at the forum that her missionary work was not political but religious.

She said she could only be deported if she committed a serious crime or attempted an armed uprising against the government. —Rie Takumi/NB, GMA News