Members of Leonen committee probing ‘Ma’am’ Arlene known

MANILA, Philippines – Supreme Court Justice Marvic Leonen has chosen the two members of his committee that will be investigating an alleged big-time court fixer who goes by the nickname “Ma’am Arlene.”

Joining the Leonen committee are retired SC associate justices Alicia Austria Martinez and Romeo Callejo.

The SC created the committee on October 17 to investigate allegations that “Ma’am Arlene” and other big-time fixers run an intricate corruption web in the judiciary.

“The Committee of Justice Leonen is tasked to oversee all ongoing investigations and coordinate with any and all relevant office and agencies,” said Supreme Court spokesman Theodore Te on Tuesday.

It will “access, receive and evaluate information from any source” and “provide recommendation to the Supreme Court En Banc.”

The committee will consolidate all investigations being conducted by various government bodies into alleged “influence peddlers in the judiciary,” according to an earlier statement by the High Court.

Currently doing parallel probes are the Office of the Court Administrator, the Department of Justice-National Bureau of Investigation (as requested earlier by Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno), and the Court of Appeals (as initiated by the Court of Appeals Presiding Justice Andres Reyes Jr).

Philippine Star columnist Jarius Bondoc had written about “Ma’am Arlene,” saying that she specializes in fixing big corporate cases in Manila and other major cities.

He wrote in his October 14 column: “She throws birthday bashes for magistrates, gifts their spouses with signature brands, and bankrolls their family junkets to Hong Kong and Macau. All this, in exchange for decisions favoring her litigant-clients. One such client allegedly is a flour smuggler.”

The Leonen committee “is vested with all necessary powers, including the power to designate its own resource person, call upon witnesses to give testimony and avail itself of whatever assistance the Court can provide to perform its functions.”

The chief of the court’s Public Information Office has been given sole authority to speak on behal of the committee. – Rappler.com