Critics agree that much of Southeast Asia desperately needs judicial reform and rule of law. Yet, there is remarkably little comparative scholarship on law and legal institutions in the region. In this blog, I'll follow constitutional developments in Brunei, Burma (Myanmar), Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, as well as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Super Ombudsman
The Philippine Supreme Court recently decided that the Ombudsman can remove corrupt officials (within the executive bureaucracy) directly, on its own initiative. That's frankly a startling new power to just "discover" so many years after the Ombudsman Office began operations. It also potentially makes the Ombudsman a much more powerful player. Interestingly, this decision was penned by Justice Antonio Carpio, notably one not sympathetic to Arroyo (he swore Aquino in). Thus, the Ombudsman could become a powerful too in the Aquino campaign to clean up the bureaucracy of corrupt Arroyo appointees - assuming he's serious about following through on his pledges. You can read more about the case here.
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