Message
The Honorable AVELINO V. CRUZ
Chairman, ALA Philippine National Committee
President, Asean Law Association of the Philippines
(A Testimonial for Hon. Artemio V. Panganiban, Chief Justice of the Philippines, Saturday, 22 April 2006 7:00 in the evening at the Ballroom Dusit Hotel Nikko, Makati City)
In behalf of the Philippine National Committee, I am privileged to welcome our guests, especially those from otherASEAN nations, to this Testimonial in honor of the Chief Justice of the Philippines, Artemio V. Panganiban.
His elevation sustains an ALA tradition, as ALA member jurists continue to assume the leadership of their respective high courts in the Asean countries. Recall that in the Philippines, the late Chief Justice Marcelo Fernan and former Chief Justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr. were both pillars and ardent supporters of ALA. Names of chief magistrates in their respective highest courts such as Tun Suffian, Purwoto Gandasubatra, Mohamed Dzaiddin, Bagir Manan, Atthaniti Disatha Amnarj and Sansern Kraichitti, resonate through the corridors of ALA’s 25-year history.
By the same token, counterpart leadership in their respective Bar Societies and the Academe such as that of T P B Menon, Edgardo J. Angara, Hendon Mohamed, Komar Kantaatmadjia, Franklin M. Drilon, Tan Sook Yee, S. Jayakumar and Teuku Rdhie, to name just a few, mirror the uniqueness of the ALA family whose members are, in their home countries, primus inter pares in their respective fields.
I would like to particularly welcome and congratulate ALA President, Justice Chao Hick Tin, who was recently elevated to the position of Attorney General of Singapore, as well as Singapore National Committiee Vice Chairman, Mr. Lee Seiu Kin, who was appointed Justice of the Singapore Supreme Court.
This ALA testimonial is a fitting tribute to Chief Justice Panganiban, one of the Philippines’ most brilliant and respected jurists, the moving spirit and tireless organizer behind last year’s unprecedented global conference in Judicial Reform. A true ALA pioneer with whom I worked closely in the 1980 1st ALA General Assembly in Manila, he has in recent years, contributed tirelessly in virtually all Governing Council and General Assembly meetings, and even in the ALA Golfers Club events.
In behalf of all members of ALA Philippines, I wish to convey to Chief Justice Panganiban our warmest personal regards and best wishes.
The Personal Website of Retired Chief Justice Panganiban 