Love will have to wait. Couples who have been scheduled to be married in civil rites by a Judge may have to wait until after April 20, or when the world is able to keep the coronavirus at bay.
Judges in Negros Oriental, along with Judges around the country, have been tasked to stay home to prevent the further spread of CoViD-19.
“All courts nationwide, from the Supreme Court down to the first level courts, shall be physically closed to all court users, and may be reached only through their respective hotlines, and email addresses, and Facebook accounts effective Monday, March 23,” read Admin Circular No. 32 issued by Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta on March 20.
As all court hearings nationwide have been suspended by the Chief Justice, efforts here have been put in place to ensure that urgent matters may be attended.
The Office of the Executive Judge in Dumaguete City, through 1st Vice Executive Judge Marie Rose Inocando-Paras, released Monday an official schedule of Judges-on-duty to ensure that at least one Judge is available if there is an urgent concern: March 19 and 20, Judge Maria Angelita Banta-Alcoran; March 23 and 24, Judge Arlene Catherine Dato-Villegas; March 25 and 26, Judge Leoncio Bancoro; March 27 and 30, Judge Marie Rose Inocando-Paras; March 31 and April 1, Judge Roderick Maxino April 2 and 3, Judge Sheila Lynn Catacutan-Besario April 6 and 7, Judge Gloria Yee-Uymatiao; April 8 and 15, Judge Gerardo Paguio Jr. April 13 and 14, Judge Amelia Lourdes Mendoza. Atty. Maria Antonia Lacsican-Bulado is assigned Clerk of Court of the Regional Trial Court. Executive Judge Paguio and the Vice Executive Judges are on call.
“The litigants, lawyers, prosecutors and the general public are advised to first call the proper court through its hotline, or access through email or Facebook, where it shall be determined if the matter being raised is urgent. If urgent, only then will the judge-on-duty will go to court to receive and act on the urgent matter,” Circular No. 32 partly read.
The judges-on-duty have been ordered to “stay at their respective residences, and shall only go to their courts once it has been determined that an urgent matter has to be acted upon”.
“The following are the only matters we will entertain: urgent petitions, motions, and pleadings in relation to bail and habeas corpus, promulgation of judgement of acquittals, or reliefs to arrested/detained persons during the period, and other matters related to the health emergency,” explained Judge Repollo Cenon Voltaire Repollo who was assigned on-duty on March 17-18, referring to AC No. 31.
Also considered urgent matters are the issuance of search warrants, and the implementation of warrants of arrest, Judge Repollo added.
He said he actually has a wedding to solemnize on April 1st but even that will have to wait. The order from the Chief Justice came after the “exponential spread” of CoViD infection that has placed some parts of the country in extreme enhanced community quarantine, or lockdown, or under curfew.
Judge Inocando-Paras in her memo quoted an explanation by Deputy Court Administrator Jenny Lind Aldecoa-Delorino: The rotation of the judges excludes judges who are at risk due to age and health conditions, those who are not able to report for work due to lockdown, and those on a 14-day quarantine. All government courts will only operate from 8:30 am to 2 pm with the “necessary skeleton staff” of the judge-on-duty.
The order was disseminated for all litigants, justices, judges, personnel of the judiciary, and members of the Bar. (IFBP)