Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo on Wednesday opened a “justice zone (JZ) dialogue” in Cebu City with judiciary members, government prosecutors, law enforcers, and representatives of local government units in a bid to firm up overall speedy coordination and cooperation in the administration of justice.
JZs are projects of the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC) which is composed of the Supreme Court (SC), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).
The dialogues serve as venues “where key programs relating to the delivery of justice are in place to maximize coordination among the different agency actors to address the perennial issue of delay and the greater problem of accountability.”
In a statement, the SC’s public information office, said the Cebu City meeting “was the first of a series of face-to-face dialogues among the justice sector stakeholders that will be held to ensure that the existing Justice Zones will be able to maximize their potential and continue to be effective mechanisms for coordination and cooperation.”
Gesmundo stressed that the JZ dialogue series will help the JSCC to hear directly from the frontliners of the justice sector the activities that are happening on the ground, as well as their accomplishments and the issues they are facing.
Gesmundo underscored the value of the dialogue as the JSCC formulates and adopts policies and programs that will be more focused and truly responsive.
He then asked the stakeholders to take part in the SC’s Strategic Plan for Judicial Innovations 2022-2027 (SPJI) aimed primarily at dispensing “real-time justice.”
“I urge you to study the Strategic Plan of the Supreme Court to see how your activities can align with the activities planned for the next five years. In doing this, I believe that the Cebu City Justice Zone will be able to lead all the other Justice Zones in achieving 100 percent delivery of responsive and real-time justice within the next two years,” the Chief Justice said.
JZ dialogues are also scheduled in Quezon City, Davao City, Angeles City, Bacolod City, Naga City, Calamba City, Balanga City, and Baguio City.
The JZs in Balanga City and Baguio City were opened after Gesmundo took over the top post in the judiciary in April 2021.
Gesmundo was joined in the Cebu City event by Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez and Interior Undersecretary Oscar Valenzuela.
Also present were SC Justices Amy C. Lazaro-Javier, Rodil V. Zalameda, Samuel H. Gaerlan, Jhosep Y. Lopez, Jose Midas P. Marquez, and Maria Filomena D. Singh; Court of Appeals Justices Jennifer Ong and Michael Ong; Court Administrator Raul B. Villanueva; Deputy Court Administrator Jenny Lind R. Aldecoa-Delorino; Assistant Court Administrator and PIO Chief Brian Keith F. Hosaka; Deputy Clerk of Court and Judicial Reform Program Administrator Laura C.H. Del Rosario; European Union Governance in Justice Program (GOJUST Program) Team Leader Christian Eldon; and trial court judges, prosecutors, and representatives of local government units in Cebu.