The Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) acted with indecent alacrity in shortlisting on Friday morning Justices Teresita De Castro, Diosdado Peralta and Lucas Bersamin as nominees for the vacant position of chief justice.

The shortlist was finalized by the JBC in less than 24 hours after the aforenamed justices were charged with culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust together with four other associate justices who voted for the ouster of Chief Justice Sereno in an irregular and improper quo warranto petition.

The JBC should have considered with requisite deliberation the disqualification of the justices in view of the pendency of the impeachment cases which are akin to or even more serious than an administrative case whose pendency bars the appointment of any applicant to a judicial position.

The rationalization that the impeachment complaints have not matured to a pending case is flawed because upon filing of the said impeachment complaints and before they are dismissed, said impeachment complaints are deemed pending just like unresolved criminal and administrative cases.

The JBC is called upon to withdraw momentarily the shortlist and re-open the filing of applications FOR the position of chief justice.

EDCEL C. LAGMAN