Economist Cielito Habito is sanguine on the positive result of the guilty verdict on Chief Justice Renato Corona, who was impeached Tuesday for not disclosing all his assets in his statement of assets, liabilities and networth (SALN).
“Hopefully it now paves the way for far-reaching and fundamental reforms in governance because that is always been the dramatic, that has always been the main impediment to investment growth in the country,” the Ateneo de Manila economics professor said after the investors’ forum spearheaded by the Institute of Corporate Directors’ (ICD) in Makati City Wednesday.
Habito, who also served as head of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), also said investments to the country is expected to increase following the verdict on Corona’s case noting that it showed how committed the government is in putting in necessary reforms in the bureaucracy.
“My own sense is yes (it will add to investors’ confidence) because of the demonstration of the seriousness on the part of the government,” he said.
Corona was impeached when the senator-judges voted 20 to 3 after 43 days of the nationally televised impeachment trial.
The chief justice was found guilty for not disclosing his bank deposits amounting to about US$ 2.4 million and P80 million in his SALNs from 2002-10.
“The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, having tried Renato C. Corona, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, upon three articles of impeachment charged against him by the House of Representatives, with a guilty vote by 20 senators representing at least two-thirds of all the members of the Senate, has found him guilty of the charge under Article 2 of the said articles of impeachment,” Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said after four hours of voting.
