My Dilemma with Noli Eala

After reading this:

http://cathychronicles.blogspot.com/2007/08/noli-eala-scandal.html

I wanted to give my two cents worth on the scandal that is rocking both the legal profession and the basketball world, both of which are close to my heart. So here goes....

In high school, the teacher I looked up to the most was Ms. Maryann Tantoco. She taught English Literature and in the one year that I was under her, the love for books and reading were instilled in me. So much so that when I filled up my college application form, I decided to take up Literature. Literature would be my passion while Legal Management (the other course i took in college) would be the course that would make my parents happy. They would never have allowed me to take Literature alone since, in their words, 'walang pera sa course na yan'. But I persisted and even if I made my college life twice as hard, I never regretted taking the course.

During that time, I wanted to be like Ms. Tantoco. I think we all did. She was smart, attractive, articulate, affluent PLUS she had a boyfriend studying at the Ateneo Law School. That boyfriend would eventually become her husband, later on to be known as the controversial Noli Eala, now her ex-husband.

When I would see Noli Eala at the PBA games with his young and attractive mistress and their children in tow, it made me uncomfortable. I felt bad for Ms. Tantoco even if it had been years since I last had contact with her. But because he held a position that commanded respect, me and the rest of the basketball world accorded him that respect. Besides, no one seemed to think that morality was an issue in the league. Otherwise, they would not have made him the Commissioner in the first place. So I sat back, kept my opinions to myself and watched the PBA grow by leaps and bounds under his leadership. I thought, hey, the guy may be messed up personally but at least he's doing a good job for the PBA.

I was not around when news of his disbarment first came out. When I heard about it, it hit me like a rock. As a lawyer, passing the bar and getting your license entails blood, sweat and tears. You sacrifice going out at night, unable to do what other young people are doing, not earning money while being beholden to your parents.....hoping that someday, all your sacrifices will amount to something. And once you pass the bar and earn the distinction of becoming a lawyer, it's as if you never went thru any hardships at all. It is for this reason that taking away someone's license is, for me, a serious matter. It is not to be taken lightly and should only be revoked under the most serious and grave circumstances.

In comes my dilemma. Is it right for Noli Eala to be condemned because he abandoned his legal wife and their children for a woman who is married to another? And while still in their own respective marriages, how can anyone ever justify Noli impregnating her? Does he deserve to be in an office that commands so much respect? Does he have the moral ascendancy to lead a professional league that represents the number one sport in this country? But more importantly, does his indiscretion amount to serious and grossly immoral conduct to constitute a legal ground for disbarment?

I am of the opinion that being granted the license to practice law carries with it numerous duties and responsibilities, all of which were made known to us even before passing the bar. There is even a subject in the bar devoted to legal ethics. Noli Eala knew what he was getting into. He is well versed with the laws of the land. He should've known that what he was doing was illegal, criminal, immoral and unethical as a member of the court. His responsibilities become even more burdensome because not only is he a lawyer, he is the leader of the number one professional sports league in the country. You cannot have a leader espousing rules of conduct, proper behavior, propriety and demanding the same from its members if he himself fails to practice the same. If he was brazen enough to carry on such a public affair, then he should be man enough to face the consequences of his actions.

Are the circumstances enough to revoke his license? No less than the Supreme Court voted in the positive. These justices take pains in each and every case they handle. They realize that each decision issued by the SC is life-changing. They do not take this duty lightly. As such, I believe that the decision to disbar was arrived at only after very careful consideration and much debate among the justices. In light of this, my answer to the question would also be yes.

What about this: Noli Eala isn't the first person to cheat on his wife, why disbar him? This, i'm sure, is indisputable. But in most cases, the aggrieved party will not file a disbarment case for fear of negative publicity. Nobody wants to wash their dirty laundry in public, right? In Noli Eala's case, the aggrieved party (the husband of his mistress) did. He had every right to defend his honor and I will not fault him for this. In most cases, extra-marital affairs are carried on discreetly. Not so with Noli Eala. He made his affair a very public spectacle for everyone in Araneta to feast on. And because the definition of what constitutes gross immorality is within the purview of the SC, they declared that his actions did indeed constitute a legal ground to disbar him. Regardless of the argument that every other male lawyer is doing the same thing and getting away with it, it doesn't make the SC decision wrong.

Controversial, unfair, excessive, harsh? Maybe. But no one can say it is without basis. So why haven't all the other immoral lawyers been booted? Simply because no one has initiated disbarment proceedings against them and NOT because it has become an accepted norm in the legal profession. And maybe, they did a better job at keeping their affairs private and discreet.

So there, I've said my piece. Since this is my blog, I guess I'm free to say whatever I want. But I'm not naman that callous. Should this post offend anyone, please know that it was never my intention.