In a 13-page order, the high court en banc dismissed the decision of Judge Fernando Vil Pamintuan of the Baguio City Regional Trial Court Branch 3 following the complaint filed by former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos.

Pamintuan reversed the final and executory order of a co-equal court that ruled over the custody of the statuette. Pamintuan, in his decision, said the statuette in the court’s custody was fake.

But the high court pointed out that such issue was not part of the final and executory decision that was reversed by the other court.

“This may be his opinion or the litigants’ during the hearing…but Judge Pamintuan should have realized that the trial court did not rule on that point,” the high court said.

“Judge Pamintuan indeed made a serious error in making such a pronouncement in the challenged order…It is axiomatic that when a judgment is final and executory, it becomes immutable and unalterable. It may no longer be modified in any respect either by the court, which rendered it or even by this Court,” the Supreme Court said.

“It is inexcusable for Judge Pamintuan to have overlooked such basic legal principle no matter how noble his objectives were at that time…competence is a mark of a good judge.”

The high court noted that the case filed by Mrs. Marcos is not the first case against Pamintuan. He has other administrative cases and has been suspended and fined.

“The court doubts if he ever took seriously its previous warnings that a repetition of his offenses would merit a more severe sanction from this court…This court should, therefore refrain from being lenient when doing so would give the public the impression that incompetence and repeated offenders are tolerated in the judiciary,” the high court added.

Pamintuan, in his decision ruled that the Golden Buddha is a fake or a mere replica of the original Golden Buddha, which has a detachable head and has been missing since 1971.

The Golden Buddha was found by locksmith-turned-treasure hunter Rogelio Roxas in 1971 near a Baguio hospital. It was allegedly taken from him by dictator Ferdinand Marcos. It has been subject to several court proceedings.

Tetch Torres, Phil. Daily Inquirer