Instead, she had to trek the lonely road by voicing her dissent against authoritarianism,” Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno said in speech during the National Women’s Month celebration at St. Scholastica’s College. Sereno was paying tribute to the late Supreme Court Associate Justice Cecilia Muñoz-Palma, who she said fearlessly fought the martial rule of then President Ferdinand Marcos. The Chief Justice is currently on leave after she was pushed by her colleagues to go on an indefinite leave in order to prepare for her looming impeachment trial at the Senate. Like Palma, Sereno also broke ceiling by becoming the first woman Chief Justice. Sereno has clashed with President Rodrigo Duterte in the past after the latter publicly identified judges allegedly involved in illegal drug trade.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer March 07, 2018 12:22 UTC