On the heels of bribery allegations by Senator Antonio Trillanes IV against two Court of Appeals justices, another one of their colleagues is also under fire for a separate issue – this time for allegedly being biased in a case involving the Harbour Center Port Terminal Inc. in Manila.
In a 26-page motion, One Source Port Support Services asked CA Associate Justice Danton Bueser to “voluntarily inhibit and/or disqualify himself from further handling the case.” One Source accused the justice of bias and partiality in favor of businessman Reghis Romero II, who is at the center of the dispute on the ownership and management of the port.
On Dec. 1, 2014, a Pasig City regional trial court allowed One Source Port Services to manage and operate HCPTI. Romero elevated the matter to the CA Second Division, of which Bueser is a member, which eventually stopped the Pasig court’s order through a temporary restraining order last January.
After issuing the TRO against the Pasig court’s order, the CA division next issued a writ of preliminary injunction two months later, or last March. Both the TRO and the injunction were written by Bueser, said One Source.One Source noted that Bueser was always the “ponente” or the one who writes the decision in all cases involving the HCPTI.
“It should be emphasized that in all these resolutions above, and despite the many changes in the composition of the Justices issuing said resolutions, Justice Bueser remained a constant signatory,” One Source’s motion noted.
“Because of the casual violation of the private respondent’s basic right to due process as a result of the issuance of the aforesaid resolution, private respondent could not help but lose its trust and confidence that it can still obtain a fair treatment in this case, unless Associate Justice Danton Q. Bueser totally inhibits himself in this case,” the company added in its motion.
One Source said the CA’s writ of preliminary injunction was unlawful since it expanded the scope of the amended petition to include other matters without giving One Source the opportunity to respond.
The firm said that only the faction of Romero was recognized and given a copy of the March 11 preliminary injunction order, giving undue preference to it over the other faction.
“Despite the uncertainty or dispute anent the ownership of petitioner-corporation HCPTI, (Bueser) allowed the HCPTI to be a petitioner in this case thus, giving an undue advantage to one faction of HCPTI, particularly that of the faction of petitioner Reghis Romero II,” said One Source.
Another proof of Bueser’s alleged bias, according to One Source, was a December 12 resolution from the CA Second Division, still written by Bueser, directing Romero to amend his petition by including HCPTI as a co-petitioner even without Romero filing any motion.
GMA News Online is still trying to reach Bueser for his side.Earlier, Bueser’s colleagues at the CA, Associate Justices Jose Reyes Jr and Francisco Acosta, have been accused by Sen. Antonio Trillanes III of accepting a total of P50 million in bribe to stop the suspension of Makati Mayor Junjun Binay. Both the justices denied the allegation.
