A Day in the Life of a (Struggling) Law Student

i loved this evening’s new year’s eve worship service in my home church, CAP.  there was a "different" ceremony at the end of the service, where we burned pieces of paper on which things we wanted to do away with were written.  it was followed with a prayer and our entire church singing the benediction.  (i really love how the entire CAP congregation sings "the Lord bless you & keep you" in SATB, ha!).  tito willy padolina (a former DOST sec and one of my dad’s church friends) played the violin, his son-in-law (ling’s hubby) played auld lang syne on bagpipes and tita tina padolina (who’s the chancellor of the UP Open U) gave a nice message about God’s fireworks.  she made this analogy between Christians and fireworks: God is the fuel which causes christians to spread His love to all (even to the undesirable). 

it is with the main idea of that meditation that i enumerate the following things that i’m looking forward to in ‘07:

1.  law school - ang matapos ang civpro (at iba ko pang subjects) ng maluwalhati, 4th yr na ako the sem after this one!

2.  extra-curricular - i might take some next steps, which  we’ll be seeing a couple of weeks from now.  it’s not easy being a student leader, but it certainly gives me a lot of fulfillment, knowing i could be in a position to make positive differences in processes, paradigms and people lives. 

3.  new job - i’ll be taking on a challenging role - sales/marketing director of a start-up company: edge technology corporation, distributor of pldt my dsl, smart broadband & airborne access.  also a way of advancing my advocacy: promoting entrepreneurship, helping strengthen SME’s.

4.  stronger relationships - with God, with mike, with my mom and sister, friends (bestfriends, closefriends, blockmates, sisses, churchmates, colleagues in school and at work) and relatives.  having a relationship is not easy.  it entails a lot of hard work, humility, commitment, love, and quality time, which one should make despite other priorities.  but relationships are most important.  no man is an island; i’m not one either.  my relationships are what make my life worth living, my pursuits worth pursuing.

5.  more maturity - i have a lot more room to grow - spiritually, emotionally, academically, professionally.  i want grow more Christ-like each day and so i could eventually be the person God wants me to be.  i still have a lot of personal struggles, attitudes and habits that i ought to get rid of and i know there will be a lot of hurdles to deal with in ‘07.  but with God’s guidance and provision, i look forward to lessons learned coupled with successes (which may come in various forms). 

6.  being God’s firework - i look forward to being a blessing to those whose lives God would want me to touch.  i will continue to be involved in the music ministry.  (choir mainly and band kung kaya ng time).  i look forward to being involved in causes and endeavors He directs me to pursue. 

i truly look forward to 2007.  i hope i could be one bright firework for the Lord this year. 

Last December 15, 2005, a group of UP students with strong anti-tuition fee increase sentiments, barged through the doors of Malcolm Hall, in search of members of the University of the Philippines Board of Regents. The group was headed by the Student Regent, and the University Student Council. Such students verbally assaulted members of the UP Law Student Government and the UP Law community who were at that time peacefully preparing for “Malcolm Madness”, the College’s Christmas program. In the attempt to find the regents, these students harassed practically everyone who was foreign to them including the UP Law Center staff, the UP Law Personnel and fellow UP students. They were hurling accusations such as, “Tinatago n’yo sila!” “Niloko n’yo kami!” “Bakit n’yo kami pinagtatagksilan?!” at the members UP Law community who were in sight. During the height of turmoil, a student of the College was pushed to the door of the Malcolm Theater in her attempt to ward off the rallyists from entering the Theater, wherein there were students preparing for the College program; a handful of other students were likewise emotionally traumatized. It was only after a five-minute, initially adversarial dialogue between the Student Regent and the Law Student Government President that the angry crowd was asked by their leaders to turn around and leave. Unfortunately, however, the injury had already been inflicted. Aside from emotional and physical injuries, the mob ultimately left the college with property damaged, specifically the door of Malcolm Hall and the Malcolm driveway was splashed with red paint. Furthermore, the “Malcolm Madness” was cancelled for the first time since its inception, causing losses for equipment rentals and decoration costs on the part of the UP Law students and the UP Law Student Government.

It is understandable that these students may have had strong sentiments against the Tuition Fee Increase issue. After all, they are entitled to express their vehement objections to the Board of Regents in accordance with their constitutional right to free speech and expression. However such forms of expression are never justifications to trample on others’ rights to safety of their persons and property.

Thus, it is with a heavy heart that we, the Law Student Government, condemn this chaotic incident initiated by our fellow UP students. We believe that their acts have crossed the borderline of freedom of expression as it tramples on propriety, ethics and any notion of reason. We have no choice but to respond accordingly – as of all institutions, the UP College of Law and the UP Law student Government will not tolerate exploits of such kind. In verbally and physically hurting other people and destroying property, these acts are no less than criminal.

We hold the Student Regent responsible for inciting this mob and leading it into our college with no sense of direction or restraint according to the purpose by which it was gathered. We implead him primarily for being the proximate cause of the incident, without regard for those who do not share his agenda.

We hold the members of the University Student Council responsible, most especially the USC Chair, according to the principle of command responsibility. The Chair was not present during the incident; the members of the USC who were in attendance did nothing to pacify the crowd during the height of chaos. We deem that they should have reasonably anticipated such consequences when a group of extremely emotionally charged individuals rally: chaos will definitely result from the mob rule - despite lack of premeditated ill intentions to inflict harm on others.

As veterans of mass action protests, the Student Regent and the University Student Council should have foreseen harmful results and consequently formulated and implemented proactive safeguards to avoid or minimize them. The damages caused by these acts of omission were not rectified by belated measures to make the crowd turn back. Such conduct of the USC betrays the very office that they occupy. Beyond advocacies, the primary accountability of the USC belongs to the UP populace, whose safety, welfare and well-being they ought to have upheld - whichever side of the fence the constituent-students sit in an issue.

We, too, in the UP Law Student Government, are scholars of the people. Like every UP Student, we are being educated to become productive members of society who are reflective of the ideals of the nation. We believe that the UP student has brilliant ideas and opinions, which have to be voiced out in a reasonable manner. Thus do we champion the spirit of activism, one of the forces for which our University is distinctly renowned. It is in this spirit that we, ourselves, participate in various rallies, fora and social action in the midst of various issues of public interest. Yet, we condemn riotous and anarchical modes of activism. No matter how noble the purpose or ends of a rally, mutinous styles of mass action will NEVER be justified, especially when they infringe on others’ safety of their persons and property. Though we, ourselves, are activists in our own right, we will never allow activism to cast a dark shadow on the conduct and character of the UP students.

We, in the UP College of Law, denounce the December 15, 2005 incident in Malcolm Hall. We deem that it is only just and equitable that those at its helm be held responsible for its outcome. We condemn all types and kinds of abuses of the spirit of activism, which has been enshrined in the history of our university. Relentlessly, we will cling to our bias for order, propriety and the rule of law.

Christina Faye M. Condez

President

Lorybeth R. Baldrias

Vice-President

Faustina Victoria E. Ochoa

Secretary

Hardy B. Aquende

Treasurer

Elgene Lawrence C. Feliciano

Public Relations Officer

Leandro Angelo Y. Aguirre

College Representative

It is an obvious and grave abuse of power and discretion.

The Majority in the House of Representatives have amended our system of government by using a technicality. They have effectively destroyed the safeguard afforded by the Constitution to all Filipino people.

After several attempts to amend the Constitution have failed (i.e. Concon and Pirma) last Tuesday and Wednesday evening, December 5 and 6, the Lower House amended House Rule 105 Rule XV (Proposals to Amend or Revise the Constitution), removing the sentence “The adoption of resolutions proposing amendments to or revision of the constitution shall follow the procedure for the enactment of bills.” The Lower House then passed House Resolution 1450: Calling for the Convening of Congress to Propose Amendments to, or Revision of, the Constitution Upon a Vote of Three-Fourths of All its Members, Pursuant to Section 1, Article XVII of the Constitution. The House Majority, through Cong. Villafuerte, admits that they will be proposing to postpone the May elections to November 2007.  They want term limits to be removed too.  Recently, in response to pressure from various sectors , they are now singing a different tune.  They have set a 72-hour deadline for Senate to respond to an invitation for Constitutional Convention. 

The Law Student Government of the University of the Philippines College of Law, is not against the idea of charter change per se. However, we are strongly against the timing, and motivations behind the present attempts to change our Constitution. We believe that now is not the time to amend the constitution.  The fundamental law of our country should be amended in a deliberate manner, in an atmosphere of sobriety. 

When the House Majority resorted to the brash and brazen manner of the amendment of Rule 105 of the House Rules and the passing of House Resolution 1450, it left the minority lost and confused. They construed Article XVII Section 3 of the 1987 Constitution to say that House of Representatives by itself can amend the Constitution – a forced interpretation which bastardizes the intent of the very Constitution they swore to uphold. The intent of the Constitutional framers have been made clear in both jurisprudence and practice – that ours is a bicameral system of government. The records show that the framers intended for both Houses “to vote separately”.  Ratio legis et anima.

With the shift from Con-Ass to Con-con, however, the pressure exerted by the House Majority to amend the Constitution remains.  Now, they are even calling on the CBCP to urge the Senate to join them in supporting Con-con.  From a first Concon to Pirma to Con-Ass then to another Con-con, they are pursuing all means and methods available to amend the fundamental law of our land.  Their desperation to amend the Constitution before the May 2007 elections has become even more apparent. 

The timing of these maneuvers seriously casts doubt as to the intent of the proponents. With the May 2007 elections in sight, and with a great number of Congressmen nearing their term limits, this is obviously a ploy to perpetuate themselves in power. The process of amending the Constitution should be done with the interest of the Filipino people in mind – not with the interests of a few self-serving Congressmen. Furthermore, if the Charter Change were to push through, there would be an inevitable need for government funds. At this point in time, the government’s budget has already been allocated for the May 2007 elections. Re-allocation of such budget for the plebiscite as proposed by some Congressmen would amount to malversation of government funds. We condemn this clear intent to violate the law.

The LSG believes that the “Majority” in the House of Representatives is not the Majority of the Philippine Nation. We believe that there is a majority of critical-minded people able to recognize such despicable political maneuvers but who have just remained silent, and still another mass which has resorted to apathy.

We call on this majority to speak out. Together let us raise our voices in indignation & protest against the Chacha tactics of the House Majority. Let us not fall prey to the manipulations of the Administration congressmen.

We call on the minority Congressmen and the Senate to stand on their ground.  We want to let them know that we are rallying behind them in their efforts to thwart the actions of other legislative leaders to perpetuate themselves into power.

We call on the Supreme Court to properly rule on the petitions asking for the proper interpretation of the Constitution.  We beseech them to have in mind the intent of the framers to have a bicameral system of government in accordance with the system of checks and balances espoused by the Constitution. We implore the Supreme Court not to hide behind the political question doctrine or the doctrine of acquiescence as captured in Javellana v. Executive Secretary.  We are against all this and we making our voices heard and let no one say otherwise.   

We call on the students of the

College

of

Law

to study and inform ourselves about the present issue vis-à-vis the law as we have been taught, and the possible consequences of having ill-motivated Charter Change. Let us use our privileged position to discuss and share our knowledge with others. We can also help in the initiatives of our professors, who, as of the moment, are in the process of preparing petitions to the Supreme Court. And for those who wish to do so, we can let our voices be heard and participate in protest actions against the present move to amend our Constitution. Let us be at the forefront of these events which could shape the course of our Nation’s history.

Let us not get caught in the tragedy of being a law student who studies the law in a vacuum and remains in the dark in the midst of surrounding political turmoil.  Let us grab this chance to learn the law not just inside Malcolm Hall but to learn it in spite of Malcolm Hall.  This IS learning the law in the “Grand Manner”.

Christina Faye M. Condez

President

Lorybeth R. Baldrias

Vice-President

Faustina Victoria E. Ochoa

Secretary

Hardy B. Aquende

Treasurer

Elgene Lawrence C. Feliciano

Public Relations Officer

Leandro Angelo Y. Aguirre

College Representative