FORMER Chief Justice Renato Corona died of a heart attack before dawn Friday. He was 67.
The Palace, which had orchestrated his ouster by impeachment in 2012 and hounded him with tax evasion cases afterward, sent its condolences to Corona’s family.
The Supreme Court, which he served for a decade, ordered all courts to fly the flag at half-staff starting Friday.
“Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno and the associate justices of the Supreme Court mourned the passing away of Corona, the Court’s 23rd chief justice,” the Court said in a statement.
Corona was appointed to the Court’s top post in 2012 by then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to replace Chief Justice Reynato Puno upon his retirement.
Before being appointed chief magistrate, Corona served as an associate justice for the Supreme Court from 2002 to 2010.
Corona was previously a law professor, private law practitioner and member of the Cabinet under two Presidents, Fidel V. Ramos, as presidential counsel, and Arroyo, as executive secretary, before being appointed to the high tribunal.
Corona earned his Bachelor of Laws degree at Ateneo Law School in 1974. In 1981, he was accepted to the Master of Laws program of the Harvard Law School.
In April 2011, Corona graduated summa cum laude from the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School with a degree of Doctor of Civil Law.
Corona’s appointment to the top position in the Supreme Court was controversial because it was made despite an election period-ban on new appointments. The justices ruled, however, that appointments to the Court were not covered by such a ban.
In November 2011, the Supreme Court under Corona ordered the distribution of the 4,915-hectare Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac to farmers of the sugar estate owned by the family of President Benigno Aquino III. In a separate opinion, Corona argued for a lower compensation to the owners of the hacienda, based on the fair market value of the land in November 1989.
A month later, allies of President Aquino in the House of Representatives voted to impeach Corona over charges of hidden assets and partiality toward Arroyo.
After an impeachment trial— the first in judicial history—the Senate voted 20-3 in May 2012 to convict him for betrayal of public trust due to his failure to disclose all his properties in his statement of assets, liabilities and net worth. Corona was then removed from office and succeeded by Chief Justice Sereno.
In 2013, Senator Jinggoy Estrada revealed that senators who voted to convict Corona received P50 million in extra development funds from the Budget Department. While the Palace denied that these allocations were bribes, senators who voted to acquit Corona did not receive similar funding for their projects.
Corona’s ordeal did not stop with his ouster. In March 2014, the Justice department filed a case against him before the Court of Tax Appeals for allegedly evading taxes on P120.5 million in assets.
A few weeks after that, the Office of the Ombudsman filed a civil case for forfeiture of unexplained wealth amounting to P130.3 million and also cases of perjury and violation of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials before the Sandiganbayan.
Corona vowed to clear his name and said he was the victim of “merciless persecution” by President Aquino.
He said the cases filed against him were expected, since they were the work of Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and then Justice secretary Leila de Lima, both Aquino appointees and both witnesses against him during his impeachment trial.
“The harassment continues without letup. Malacañang and its attack dogs were not content with removing me from office. They have been filing all sorts of baseless and contrived cases against me and members of my family,” he said in January 2014.
“I will fight this persecution to the very end, knowing the truth is on my side,” he added.
Rico Quicho, who was part of Corona’s defense team during the impeachment trial at the Senate, expressed deep sadness over his death.
“He was a good man, loving husband and father. CJ Corona fought the good fight to uphold the independence of the institution he dearly loved. His moral courage is second to none,” Quicho said in a statement.
He thanked Corona for the trust he had given him during the most challenging times.
“I will continue to fight for the rule of law and judicial independence. My family extends our deepest sympathies to the loved ones left behind by CJ Corona. May his soul rest in peace,” he added.
Arroyo, who is under hospital arrest, issued a statement praising Corona.
“With heartfelt prayers and sympathy, my family and I convey our deepest condolences to the family of Chief Justice Renato Corona on his passing. His unblemished record of service to the Republic, the rule of law, and legal education deserves the praise and emulation of every Filipino and every advocate of truth and justice. May the exemplary life of Chief Justice Corona be a beacon to light our way.”
On a campaign stop, vice presidential candidate Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Corona was a victim of selective justice.
“It is always sad to note the passing of a man like Chief Justice Renato Corona to whom a great injustice was visited and it is unfortunate that at the time of his death he was still under this cloud that remained above him since the impeachment trial,” Marcos said.
“He was clearly a part of the selective justice. I hope that his passing will finally bring him peace from the troubles of the day-to day-work. My family and I extend our deepest condolences to his wife, Cecille, their children and the rest of his family.”
Marcos was one of the three senators who voted against the impeachment of Corona in 2011.
Malacañang issued a brief statement.
“We extend our condolences to the bereaved family of the late CJ Renato Corona and join them in fervent prayers for his eternal repose,” the statement read.
Corona’s remains will be brought to the Heritage Park in Taguig where a public viewing will be held on Saturday.
Before his death, Corona was diagnosed with diabetes and had undergone heart bypass surgery twice.
The former chief justice graduated with honors from the Ateneo de Manila Grade School and High School. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the Ateneo de Manila University, where he also served as editor-in-chief of The Guidon, the university student publication.
Corona obtained his law degree from the Ateneo Law School in 1974. Having married right after college, Corona was working in the Office of the Executive Secretary while attending night classes in law school. He finished fifth in his class.
In 1982, Corona earned his Masters of Law degree from Harvard University, where he focused on foreign investment policies and the regulation of corporate and financial institutions.
As young lawyer, Corona was special counsel of the government-owned Development Bank of the Philippines. He later became senior vice-president and general counsel of the Commercial Bank of Manila and a senior officer in the tax and corporate counseling group of the tax division of SGV & Co.
Corona joined the Ramos administration in 1992 as assistant executive secretary for legal affairs. He was promoted to deputy executive secretary. Corona was then appointed as chief presidential legal counsel and member of the Cabinet.
When Ramos’ term ended, Corona joined the office of then Vice President Arroyo as her chief of staff. When Arroyo assumed the presidency, Corona served as presidential chief of staff, presidential spokesperson and acting executive secretary.
Corona’s son Francis announced that his father died at 1:48 a.m. at the Medical City in Pasig, where he was taken Wednesday after suffering a heart attack.
“Please pray for the eternal repose of his soul as he joins his Creator,” the family said in a brief statement, adding that the Corona’s remains will lie in state at The Heritage Park in Taguig City and viewing will start Saturday. With Sandy Araneta, Vito Barcelo and Joel E. Zurbano