SC Justice Delos Santos eyes early retirement

Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Edgardo delos Santos has expressed his intent to retire early due to health reasons, high court spokesperson Brian Keith Hosaka said Friday.

Hosaka said delos Santos informed him that the magistrate was considering the possibility of leaving the judiciary ahead of his mandatory retirement on June 12, 2022 when he turns 70.

“That is the reason why he advised his staff as early as March 19, 2021, through a letter of even date, to start looking for other employment knowing the difficulty of finding a job during this pandemic,” the SC official said in a message to reporters.

“Justice delos Santos further added that he remains an incumbent member of the Supreme Court until after a specific date of retirement, as may be indicated in a formal letter from him to the En Banc, is accepted and acted upon by the Court.”

Delos Santos told his staff that he agonized over his decision to hang his judicial robe early, spending “sleepless nights” trying to think of the “best way” to inform them “in light of the trying times we are currently experiencing.”

He said it has been his honor to serve the SC along with his staff. Delos Santos thanked them for their “dedication, commitment, patience and most especially your friendship.”

“I can truly say that I am blessed,” the justice said.

“In the brief time that we have together, I have found comfort in coming to our office with the knowledge that I am among trusted people. I saw and felt your enthusiasm in your work which in turn encouraged me to do my best as your boss and mentor,” he added.

A former Court of Appeals justice, delos Santos joined the SC in December 2019.

Aside from delos Santos, Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta had also opted for early retirement. Peralta’s 34-year stint in government ends on Friday.

SC Justice Priscilla Baltazar-Padilla retired last November at 62 years old after the Court approved her application for disability retirement. She served on the Court for only three months.

Under the Constitution, the President has 90 days from the vacancy to choose a new SC magistrate or chief justice. He has to choose his appointee from the shortlist provided by the screening body Judicial and Bar Council (JBC). —KBK, GMA News