“Do you agree with the Ateneo Student Judicial Court’s decision not to impeach School of Social Sciences Secretary-Treasurer Marvin Lagonera?”

 “I think that the Court’s decision was fair. It proves that none of the accusations [against Lagonera] could pass muster as grounds for impeachment. The fact that he dared to appoint people from the opposing party shows his commitment to finding bipartisan solutions to the problems SOSS faced. Instead, as a reward for his efforts, he got an impeachment complaint instead. This incident proves that anyone wanting to make real, meaningful change in Sanggunian will have to deal with dirty tactics from the top.”

Louis de Jesus (IV AB EC, AB Comm)

“Coming from another School Board’s perspective, I agree with [the] SJC’s decision of acquitting Lagonera with his impeachment charges only because I believe the gravity of the two impeachment cases that the decision was based on [was] not deserving of a punishment such as impeachment. Regarding the appointment of executive officers and Central Board representatives, it is quite inevitable that Lagonera would have to recruit volunteers to keep his School Board running. In other words, he had no choice. It’s like giving a carpenter a hammer but no nail. As stated by Lagonera, they are not official appointments, only volunteers. However, disappointment overwhelms me regarding his failing to keep SB documents transparent because it is not the most difficult task. As secretary-treasurer, that should have been one of the easiest things to do. Rules are rules whether we like it or not. This is the outcome of the failure of elections and the student body’s dying faith in the Sanggunian. This should serve as a wake-up call to all those who [will] vote and who [will] run for [the] Sanggunian elections. Being part of the Sanggunian isn’t a joke. Professionalism, discipline and commitment must stand. I am merely stating that I agree with the decision yet I do not approve of the idea of the possibility of having an undeserving elected Sanggunian officer… I think as the saying goes, ‘There’s no smoke if there’s no fire.’”

Melisse Yutuc (Sophomore Executive Officer, School of Science and Engineering)

“I abide by whatever decisions the school judiciary determines just as long as it does so impartially and without any special favor towards any certain party or entity. What I believe to be a much more pressing issue is the loss of relevance faced by the Sanggunian as a political body. The voter turnout during the last election generally seems to point to this assumption.”

Ronald Enrico Dizon (III BS Psy)

“I think so because… the proper process [was followed by the] Student Judicial Court. Personally, being the formator assigned to Sanggu, I believe in the idea of the institution, and included in the institution is [the] SJC. I think [the] SJC was impartial with their decision. The magistrates [and] the prosecutors did their jobs. Marvin and his team were able to defend themselves.”

Rem Casiño (Student Affairs Professional, Office of Student Affairs)

“I wholeheartedly agree with the decision of the SJC to not impeach Marvin. As an appointed SOSS Sanggu officer, I worked with Marvin a lot and witnessed first-hand that he was a good leader that consistently gave his best effort. After the failure of elections, there was a lot of work to do in order to get SOSS Sanggu back on track, but Marvin was able to formulate a game plan that was fresh and promising. No, he wasn’t perfect, but the position he was put in was undeniably difficult for anyone. Marvin is smart, kind and talented, and he was always a pleasure to work with.”

Marianne Vitug (III AB Pos)

“He shouldn’t have been tried for it in the first place. As for the mismanagement charge, I’m pretty sure Marvin isn’t the only one who should be given a written reprimand and extra work.”

Shiph Belonguel (II AB DS)