Senior magistrate refuses to testify against Sereno

Declining the House of Representatives’ invitation, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said that he cannot testify in the impeachment case against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno for he has no personal knowledge about the matters that they are set to ask him.

Last December, Carpio received an invitation to appear before the congressional proceeding but did not decide yet at that time for he said he has to know first what issues will he serve as resource person to. He wrote to the house committee on justice to inform him of the specific topics that he will have to answer during the hearing.

On Thursday, after receiving the response of the committee, the senior magistrate has made his decision to not participate.

“I have written the committee declining to testify because I have no personal knowledge of the matters the committee mentioned in its reply to me. These are the matters the committee wants to question me,” Carpio said.

Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Noel Tijam and Francis Jardeleza have previously testified against Sereno.

(DAILY NEWS ROUND UP FOR 01/ 11 / 18)