The associate justices of the Court of Appeals yesterday adopted a resolution expressing their “vote of confidence” in Chief Justice Reynato Puno following reports to oust him through impeachment for allegedly delaying the promulgation of a ruling on the disqualification case against Negros Oriental Rep. Jocelyn Limkaichong.

The two-page resolution was signed by CA Presiding Justice Conrado Vasquez and four other senior justices: Justices Portia-Alino Hormachuelos, Martin Villarama Jr., Andres Reyes Jr. and Remedios Salazar-Fernando.

“His [Puno’s] integrity, competence and independence in the performance of the constitutional mandate to adjudicate legal dispute and constitutional issues beyond reproach,” the resolution said. “Honorable chief justice has been transparent in his dealings and has not betrayed the confidentiality of the judicial process.”

According to them, while it strongly believes and acknowledges the right of every citizen to question the official acts of public servants in the judiciary, “we insist that the exercise of the right must be undertaken with utmost circumspection and that only for the noble purpose of bringing the wrongdoing and the culprit to the bars of justice.”

They warned that talk of impeachment of the chief justice are unwarranted and “serve[s] only to unduly tarnish the image of the Philippine Judiciary.”

In an interview, Chief Justice Puno thanked the public for defending him against the supposed ouster campaign.

“I take this not as a personal support but as support for the entire judiciary. As I said the judiciary has only one capital, and that is the moral capital, the trust and confidence of the people,” Puno said.

Puno admitted that he has no knowledge of the impeachment plots against him being linked to destabilization plots.

“I have no knowledge of that. And as I said, all that is necessary is for this moral force to be more manifest, to be more visible, to be more active in playing its role as the moral ballast against misfeasance and malfeasance in both public and private sector. So I am glad that the Catholic Bishops Council of the Philippines is positively responding to this call. So all that we have to do is to rally our moral leaders so that they can form a broad coalition,” he said.

“They are to act as the moral watchdog of our country. They are to be our moral stewards. They will always remind us that every moral decision has its cost. So that we can now translate all these standards of morality or our principles into definitive actions through this so-called broad coalition,” he said.

Meanwhile, former Senate President Franklin Drilon disclosed that Speaker Prospero Nograles is seriously considering an appointment to the Supreme Court to replace any of the seven vacancies which will occur in the high tribunal this year.

In an interview, Drilon said that Nograles’ appointment to the high court is “one of the strategies” being considered to head off a bitter contest in Davao province against Nograles’ nemesis, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte.

“If he [Nograles] gets appointed he would be qualified. He topped the Bar,” Drilon said.

The former senator also called for a stop to all talks about encouraging Puno to run for president in 2010 national elections, saying it would undermine the judiciary.

“I hope he [Puno] would not do that. It will seriously cast doubts on the integrity of the judicial department instead of insulating it from politics. The judiciary should be insulated from all these political talks,” Drilon said. Rey E. Requejo