The Supreme Court on Thursday assured the public that it will continue to attend to urgent matters, including cases for violating curfew ordinances, despite drastically reducing its operations.
The SC made the statement after Manila Mayor Isko Moreno on Wednesday lamented that 16 violators of Manila’s curfew ordinance failed to post bail due to the suspension of court operations.
However, upon verification to the court, Manila Metropolitan Trial Court (MeTC) Executive Judge Carissa Frondozo stressed that to date no case for violation of Manila’s curfew ordinance has been filed in court.
“So far, wala pa finafile sa amin na kahit anong violation ng curfew ordinance. I’ve informed the city administrator na mali ang sinabi ni Yorme (Mayor Isko Moreno). He [City Administrator] will relay the message daw,” Frondozo said, in her message to Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez.
SC Public Information Chief and Spokesperson Brian Keith Hosaka said that “except for night courts which have been suspended, the RTCs (Regional Trial Courts) and MeTC maintain skeleton staff precisely to address urgent matters such as bail.”
“We have ensured the public that our courts, despite drastically reducing its operations, will continue to function to attend to important and urgent matters,” Hosaka added.
Last Friday, the 15-member bench decided to adopt drastic measures to ensure the safety of its employees and officials amid the coronavirus pandemic without abandoning its constitutional mandate.
Part of the measure is to maintain a skeleton staff from March 15 to April 12 to ensure the unimpeded service to the public.