Calinog has new court house
Cases under the 10th Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) could now be tried in the town's new Hall of Justice. The single detached-building amounted to P2.7 million. Both, the respondents and complainants can now freely move during trials in the modern court house.
The project was funded by the Congressional Development Fund (CDF) of House Majority Floor Leader Arthur Defensor Sr., local government unit of Calinog and 2nd Engineering District of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). The West Visayas State University Calinog campus also made their share in the materialization of the project by donating the lot where the building stands.
The construction of the Hall of Justice was conceptualized during the incumbency of Chief Justice Reynaldo S. Puno, Court Administrator Christopher Lock and Judge Ronaldo Melliza of the 10th Municipal Trial Circuit Court. The 10th MCTC covers the towns of Calinog and Bingawan.
It was Judge Melliza who pushed for the construction of a new Hall of Justice to accommodate all the court proceedings from the two towns. The previous courtroom provided by the municipal government was too small and crowded. Judge Melliza is the 7th presiding judge to serve the town. He appreciated the realization of the project. The project design based on the design for First Level Court Hall of Justice under the Infrastructure Plan of the Supreme Court of the Philippines.
Court Administrator Lock, Congressman Defensor and his son Board Member Arthur Defensor Jr. graced the inauguration rites last August 31, 2007. Judge Alpha Delgado of ALEOSAN, Judge Ernesto Templansa of San Joaquin, Judge Ernesto Mediodia of Oton, Regional Trial Court Executive Judge Roger Patricio Fiscal Rodrigo Camacho and Atty. Florence Leda of Public Attorneys Office also witnessed the inauguration.
Lock said the event served as an advance birthday gift for him as he turns 65 and will retire in two months time. While, Congressman Defensor said the construction of the building does not matter with its cost. The important thing is for Calinog to have their own justice edifice. "The project is one way of fulfilling the dream of living a democratic way of life where people can have fair and impartial deliverance of justice."