Last June 29, the University Student Government (USG), excluding the Judiciary, voted for a new Chief Magistrate. For this academic year, College of Liberal Arts (CLA) Magistrate Miguel Adriano will assume the highest post in the Judiciary. The selection was made between Adriano and College of Business (COB) Magistrate, Jecah Francisco.
Adriano shares that the position does not make him more of a magistrate. He also stresses the importance of the Chief Magistrate’s role in representing the Judiciary. The new position would entail more duties, but his power and vote would have the same weight as the other magistrates’.
Under the USG constitution, the Chief Magistrate is tasked to convey the messages of the Judiciary to the other two branches of the USG. In cases of judicial reviews and complaints, it is the duty of the Chief Magistrate to relay the concerns to the entire Judiciary branch.
A process is then followed in examining the merits of the complaints, and the entire Judiciary, composed of the Chief Magistrate and five other Magistrates from the different colleges, would vote on their course of action.
The roster of magistrates, however, is currently incomplete; the posts for the College of Science (COS) and the College of Education (CED) are still vacant.
The underlying reason is that there are no members from COS and CED as of press time. In the event that a case is filed in a college that does not have a magistrate, the Chief Magistrate is obliged to assume responsibility.
Process of selection
To be a candidate for the Chief Magistrate position, a candidate must meet specific qualifications set by the USG. Moreover, the candidate should have been a council officer for two terms and a magistrate. He must also be knowledgeable of the constitution and the bylaws.
Before the vote, the two candidates presented, to the USG Executive Board, Legislative Assembly and the different college presidents, their vision for the branch and plan of action as a Chief Magistrate. A quorum was met and Adriano was appointed.
Towards a working Judiciary
Adriano envisions an efficient and effective judiciary branch that can assume its role within the student government; the judiciary branch is a relatively young branch in the USG as it is only on its fourth year. According to Adriano, the branch has yet to exercise the full extent of its powers.
In the past, there have been problems in the processing of complaints filed with the branch. “We solved that by further bureaucratizing the branch. We’ve created more committees within the [Judiciary],” says Adriano.
Adding to the effort to organize the branch is the role of the Ombudsman. All complaints and their processing must now pass through the Office of the Ombudsman before reaching the magistrates.
The inclusion of student advisers, who would advise students on disciplinary cases, will also augment the branch’s restructuring.
In emphasizing the importance of the branch, Adriano says that he and his fellow magistrates would like to encourage students to defend their own rights in matters that concern the administration or the USG.
“I want the judiciary [to be known to the students] because they will need us in the future. They can [approach] us for help,” he expresses.
