IDINIIN din sa impeachment complaint na inihain ng advocates for good governance sa Kongreso nitong Lunes ang pagiging biased umano ni Associate Justice Mario Victor “Marvic” Leonen kaya dapat itong mapatalsik sa Korte Suprema.

Base sa 40 pahinang Verified Complaint for Impeachment na inihain ni FLAG-Maharkila Secretary General Edwin M. Cordevilla, kapag ang kasong dinidesisyunan ng Korte Suprema ay may kaugnayan sa kanyang mga kaalyado sa Liberal Party (LP) ay todo ang suporta ni Leonen subalit kapag sa kalaban ay naglalabas ito ng dissent.

“During the administration of former President Benigno S. Aquino III, bias and partiality in favor of the Liberal Party were apparent in all the cases voted upon by respondent. However, when current President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office, respondent issued scathing dissents in almost all the cases where majority of the high Court ruled in favor of the administration,” ayon sa inihaing reklamo.

Isa ito sa mga tinukoy sa culpable violation of the constitution na ginawa umano ni Leonen kaya nais ni Cordevilla na ma-impeach ang appointee ni dating Pangulong Aquino.

Si Leonen ay itinalaga ni Aquino noong Nobyembre 21, 2012 bilang ika-172 Associate Justice ng Korte Suprema sa edad na 49 kaya mananatili ito sa Kataas-taasang Hukuman sa loob ng 21 taon.

Subalit ayon sa reklamo, halos lahat ng mga desisyon ni Leonen ay pabor sa mga taong may kaugnayan sa partido ni Aquino at kapag nasa kabilang bakod ang nasasakdal ay mayroon itong dissenting opinion.

“As stated earlier, the New Code of Judicial Conduct instructs magistrates to be competent and impartial when rendering decisions. And yet, if we were to review the decisions of respondent during the AQUINO administration, it is clear that he was anything but impartial …” nakasaad pa sa reklamo.

Kabilang sa mga kasong may dissenting opinion si Leonen ang Risos-Vidal vs Comelec (Joseph Estrada can run for office after he was pardoned for  plunder);  Enrile vs Sandiganbayan (Enrile was allowed to post bail for plunder); Saguisag vs Ochoa (The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement is constitutional).

Habang suportado naman umano ni Leonen ang mga kasong tulad ng Arigo v Swift (The Court cannot demand USS Guardian to pay damages in Tubbataha Reef); Allegations against Justice

Gregory Ong (The Court cannot demand USS Guardian to pay damages in Tubbataha Reef); Carpio-Morales v. CA (Strike down condonation doctrine) at iba pa.

“When President Duterte was voted in power, however, respondent would almost always take sides against the current administration,” ayon pa sa reklamo.

Kasama na rito ang David vs SET (Grace Poe is natural born) kung saan siya ang ponente at pawang may dissenting opinion si Leonen sa mga kasong tulad ng Ocampo v. Enriquez (Pres. Marcos burial); Re: Letter of Tony Q. Valenciano (Masses inside the court will not violate the rule on separation of Church and state ); FASAP v. PAL (PAL retrenchment of thousands of its workers is valid); Macapagal-Arroyo v. People of the Philippines (Arroyo acquitted of plunder); Lagman v. Medialdea (Martial law in Mindanao is constitutional); Republic v. Sereno (CJ Sereno quo warranto); De Lima v. Guerrero (De Lima’s arrest is valid); Zabal v. Duterte (Boracay closure is constitutional); at iba pa.

Bukod dito, inuupuan din umano ni Leonen ang mga kaso ng mga taong kasapi sa nakaraang administrasyon na kasama sa 37 na nilulumot umano sa kanyang tanggapan.”Other dormant cases involved the allies of former president Aquino: the Confederation for Unity versus former Budget secretary Florencio Abad, Association of Small Accounting versus former Finance secretary Cesar Purisima, Integrated Bar of the Philippines versus Purisima, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan versus former Transportation and Communication secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya, and Rep. Edcel Lagman versus former executive secretary Paquito Ochoa,” ayon pa sa reklamo.

Ang mga ito ang naging basehan nila para akusahan ng pagiging biased si Leonen na hindi umano dapat dahil sumumpa ito na lahat ng kanyang desisyon ay para sa lahat ng tao nang walang kinikilingan. (BERNARD TAGUINOD)