E-subpoena system launched

MANILA -- Gone are the days when subpoenas used to be served by hand. Government on Wednesday launched an e-subpoena (electronic subpoena) system to avoid delays in the judicial process. The new system aims to improve trial procedures and secure higher conviction rates in criminal cases by expediting the transmittal of subpoenas from the court to police officers. Under the new process, the judiciary and law enforcement agencies will synchronize their respective systems so subpoenas can be sent online. It is a project of the Justice Sector Coordinating Council, which is composed of the Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno and Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Alan Purisima. "This is a major breakthrough. Pero isipin niyo po, ang konsepto po nito ay simple lamang. Sa konseptong napakasimple, kaya pa nating palaganapin upang paigtingin ang pagserbisyo ng hustisya sa ating bayan...at maramdaman ng taong bayan ang progreso sa larangan ng administration of justice," Sereno said. "This launch of the e-subpoena system, while a first in the history of the Republic, is but only a beginning of a series of systems and subsystems that will progressively and strategically be pursued to synchronize with the demands of accessing justice, cutting down delays and raising the bar of law enforcement prosecution and court trial," de Lima said. -- ANC