It’s Buwan ng Wika! Why not a court petition in Filipino?

MANILA, Philippines – In an attempt to highlight the importance of using the national language, an election lawyer filed with the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday, August 5, a petition in Filipino.

It’s August, after all – officially Buwan ng Wike (National Language Month) in the Philippines.

The petition involves the case of Von Rommel Yalong, elected barangay chairman of Barangay N. Amoranto in Quezon City in 2010. His victory has been set aside by the Commission on Elections in 2012, a media release from the office of his lawyer Romulo Macalintal said.

The motion is titled “Kahilingang Lutasin ang Kasong Ito sa Lalong Madaling Panahon” (lMotion to Resolve the Case with Dispatch), and was filed with the High Court at around 11 am Monday.

The 5-page petition asks the Court to resolve the Yalong case as soon as possible, since the case has been pending for more than a year now.

“If cases involving the recently concluded 2013 elections had been decided by the court before or immediately after the May 2013 polls, then with more reason that Yalong’s case should be resolved now,” the statement read.

Macalintal said the use of Filipino in the petition is his way of promoting and honoring the national language.

“Ang paggamit ng sariling wika ay bilang pagpupugay at pagkilala sa ating sariling wika ngayong ating ipinagdiriwang ang Buwan ng Wika,” the lawyer said in his statement.

“I hope that I could be an instrument to promote and encourage the use of our own language as a medium of communication not only in the various courts in our country but in all government institutions and agencies,” he added.

“If I can do it before the court and if President Aquino himself always addresses the public in Filipino, then there is no reason why the use of our Filipino language cannot be fully propagated,” he added.

The Philippines has a number of national languages, each used by millions in various provinces. 

There has been a controversy sparked lately by a resolution by the Komisyon ng Wikang Pilipino to replace “Pilipinas” with “Filipinas” in all official names and communications in government. – Rappler.com