De Lima’s latest dilemma: a puzzle of intentions

Things aren’t exactly going well for PNoy’s feisty lackey’s prospective career path.

Her recent decision to accept her nomination for the position of Chief Justice was met with distaste from several figures in the government, some of them even from PNoy’s camp.

The possible appointment of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima as the 24th chief justice of the Supreme Court has not gained support, even from President Benigno Aquino’s allies in Negros.

“She is definitely gutsy and decisive and may be a better choice than all other candidates, but appointing her as CJ seems to be replacing the Arroyo lackey with one of Aquino’s. Too bad for her but yes, such appointment is in bad taste,” lawyer Andrea Si said.

“She is too close to PNoy to pass the ‘Caesar’s Wife Test’ (of being above suspicion),” lawyer Andres Hagad said.

Felomino Tan, president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines–Negros Occidental chapter, said that, personally, he thinks De Lima’s acceptance of the nomination is in bad taste.

There is no question about her qualification for the job, it is the fact that she testified against Corona at his impeachment trial that makes her wanting his job in bad taste, Tan said.

(Source: Link)

Meanwhile, an archbishop from Lipa, Batangas has expressed similar sentiments regarding de Lima’s latest political move.

Lipa Archbishop Ramon Arguelles said De Lima’s acceptance of her nomination was further proof that the judiciary had lost its independence and was now under the sway of the Aquino administration.

“The whole thing is in bad taste. The judiciary has lost its independence,” Arguelles said in an interview.

(Source: Link)

Talk about tough break. And the negative reception was not without merit. After all, delicadeza dictates that you abstain as much as possible from taking advantage of someone’s loss (namely, ex-Chief Justice Renato Corona) for which you yourself are responsible. Leila de Lima participated as a trial witness against Corona in his recent impeachment trial, so it is only natural for people to suspect her motives for taking the job her political enemy recently occupied.

To fuel the flames of suspicion, it is interesting to note how drastically she changed after being persuaded by none other than the president himself, and finally accepting her nomination. From being an annoying, whiny brat complaining about the possible life she would live as Chief Justice, claiming that her personality is incompatible with the job requirements, she’s now an arrogant, noisy brat who claims that she’s a strong bet for Chief Justice, that she can satisfy the people’s need for a trusted leader of the Judiciary. Needless to say, de Lima has become annoying at an astronomical scale.

Still, this sudden change of character will most definitely sow doubt in your mind regarding de Lima’s sincerity. On second thought, most probably, to take into account those who simply do not want to acknowledge the possibility (whoever they may be).

Amidst growing suspicion regarding Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s intentions for accepting her nomination for the position of Chief Justice, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte rushed to her aid and attempted to explain de Lima’s arrogance.

In the report, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte was quoted as saying that it was possible that De Lima’s confidence came from her qualifications and experiences.

(Source: Link)

It is possible, but this line of reasoning will lead us to a dilemma: why was she whining and complaining like a child prior to her acceptance of her nomination? After all, her qualifications and experiences are sure to be within her being all this time, so shouldn’t she be displaying an aura of arrogance early on? Unless of course, that “drama queen” session she had was only for show; a farce.

So if the reason for de Lima’s vanity is her background, then it’s well likely that she’s not sincere regarding her struggles before accepting her nomination. Yes, all that talk about incompatibility and insecurity and whatnot is most probably a joke… and a lame one, at that.

Otherwise, then there are two major possibilities; that there’s actually someone behind her back, or, somehow, miraculously, she decided solely on her own accord. And de Lima is very quick to reason out the latter.

Rejecting the call of House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II for her and acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio to withdraw, she said it was her “individual decision” to accept her nomination as top magistrate.

(Source: Link)

While we have no conclusive evidence to nail this thing for good, I’d like you to tell yourself that you fully believe what de Lima has just said, that you believe her every word without a shadow of a doubt in your mind. I don’t know about you, but I’d say believing her is as easy as finding a needle in a haystack. At night. And blindfolded.

Aside from her sudden change of personality, the recent events are too convenient for “individual decision” to sit well with the facts. PNoy’s active campaigning of de Lima and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Henares (who recently backed out), PNoy’s persuasion of de Lima to accept her nomination, their joint efforts to oust Corona from office, and de Lima’s failure to disprove the doubts regarding her allegiance with PNoy.

“I was able to prove my independence when I (headed) an independent constitutional body and I can do that again,” De Lima told reporters, referring to her stint as chair of the Commission on Human Rights from 2008 to 2010.

The most immediate question I could think of is… so what? PNoy wasn’t even president at that time, and, as recent events show, just because you’re a part of an independent constitutional body, doesn’t mean you’re totally invulnerable from the corruption of your neighbours. You have to actually act out the “independent” part. Long story short, de Lima’s mediocre argument didn’t disprove anything at all.

As far as the preservation of the image of integrity is concerned, the best political move de Lima could’ve made is to simply reject her nomination and run at a later time when the issues surrounding PNoy has finally died down. After all, with all those complaints we’ve heard from her, it wouldn’t be a surprise if she would reject the offer to have the chance of becoming Chief Justice. That way, de Lima won’t have to resort to mediocre arguments to defend her increasingly hopeless moral situation.

And yet, as we all know, the total opposite happened. Despite the inevitable disapproval from people who believe in delicadeza, de Lima still accepted her nomination. Despite the possibility of having her integrity doubted by the people, she still took the offer. And now, from a whiner, she has now become a braggart in an effort to gain favors for the top job.

The way things are, “individual decision” as her reason for accepting the nomination is becoming less and less likely by the minute. I mean, after all, didn’t she receive her answer from God?

She prayed hard for it, and got her answer — to give it a shot. (From benign0’s article)

Well, we all know it wouldn’t hurt to have a bet, and I think I have a good idea who this “God” really is.