SC orders disbarment of PBA commissioner + A Few Thoughts
Gary Mercado August 2nd, 2007 (Visited 8975 times)
I am reprinting in full the article re Noli Eala’s disbarment, along with an opinion at the bottom.
SC orders disbarment of PBA commissioner – By Mike Frialde
Thursday, August 2, 2007
The Supreme Court yesterday ordered the disbarment of Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner and sportscaster Emmanuel “Noli” Eala for gross immorality after he was found to have carried an adulterous relationship with a married woman.
In an 18-page per curiam decision, the Court annulled and set aside Resolution XVII-2006-06 passed on Jan. 28, 2006 by the Board of Governors of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) dismissing the disbarment case against Eala for lack of merit, and instead disbarred him for gross immoral conduct, violation of his oath of office, and in violation of Canons 1 and 7 of Rule 1.01 (A lawyer shall not engage in unlawful, dishonest, immoral or deceitful conduct) of the Code of Professional Responsibility.
The Court found out that Eala, a married man, carried an extra-marital affair with Irene Moje, a married woman, prior to the judicial declaration that her marriage was null and void.
He “showed disrespect for an institution held sacred by the law” and “betrayed his unfitness to be a lawyer,” reads part of the decision.In ordering Eala’s disbarment, the Court acted on the petition filed by Joselano Guevarra on March 4, 2002 before the IBP Committee on Bar Discipline against the PBA commissioner for “grossly immoral conduct and unmitigated violation of the lawyer’s oath.”
In his complaint, Guevarra said he first met Eala in January 2000 when his then fiancée Irene introduced the respondent (Eala) to him as her friend. Guevarra learned that Eala was married to Marianne Tantoco with whom he had three children. After his marriage to Irene on Oct. 7, 2000, Joselano noticed that from January to March 2001, Irene had been receiving cellphone calls as well as messages from Eala, some of which read “I love you,” “I miss you,” or “Meet you at Megamall.” Joselano also noticed that Irene habitually went home very late at night or early in the morning of the following day, and sometimes did not go home from work.
When he asked where she went, Irene would usually reply having slept at her parents’ house in Binangonan, Rizal or she was busy with her work. In February or March 2001, Joselano saw Irene and Eala together on two occasions. On the second occasion, he confronted them. Irene abandoned their conjugal house after that incident. On April 22, 2001, Joselano gatecrashed Irene’s birthday celebration and saw her and Eala celebrating with her family and friends. After that incident, Irene took all her personal belongings, pieces of furniture and her share of household appliances from their conjugal house.
Joselano later found in the master’s bedroom of their conjugal house, a folded social card bearing the words “I Love You” on its face. When he unfolded the card, he found a handwritten letter dated Oct. 7, 2000, the day he married Irene. In the letter, which was addressed to Irene, “Noli”, who signed the letter, expressed his “eternal love” for her even if she is about to be married.
“I hope that you have experienced true happiness with me. I have done everything humanly possible to love you. And today, as you make your vows… I will make my own to YOU!” read the letter in part. Joselano reportedly saw Eala and Irene’s car constantly parked at 71-B 11th Street, New Manila. He later learned that it was Irene’s house.
Joselano also learned later that Irene was pregnant.In his answer, Eala admitted having sent the “I Love You” card but denied flaunting an adulterous relationship with Irene. The Court added that Eala also never denied being the father of Irene’s baby girl who was born on Feb. 14, 2002.
I don’t think I have to say how terrible this development is in the light of the PBA’s dimming popularity and already overwhelming challenges. Not only does the league have to deal with dwindling gate receipts and uninteresting games, it now also has a commissioner who’s lost his professional stripes and whose conduct is far from what the league needs. Not to mention the fact that adultery is a criminal offense which carries strict penalties – which might even be made heavier by the court considering the stature of the person involved.
It is absolutely astounding to me, at this very moment, how low the PBA’s depths have reached. Noli Eala (you cannot call him Attorney anymore, remember) could very well have resigned his position when he was first dealing with the case. Instead he has hung on and now, the PBA is being lead by a disbarred professional facing criminal charges. You cannot manufacture a more painful and disappointing turn of events if you hired writers of cheap dramas on television.
How this will turn out in the following weeks is obvious. He will have to resign his PBA post, and someone will have to takeover. Critics of the league will demolish him, and the league, especially those who enjoy criticizing the Philippine team. Make no mistake about it, I truly believe that the league, its players, the teams, etc., will be facing the worst ever times of its life. In the NBA, a mere referee has turned the team’s high flying ways around via a scandal. Over here, none other than the PBA’s head honcho himself is getting the once proud league mired into mud it doesn’t deserve and could very well have been avoided.
For me, the PBA teams must circle its wagons and hunker down for a beating. It’s gonna come and it’s gonna be bad.
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November 30th, -0001 00:00
sakes! A sport that is well-loved by thousands of Filipino youth all over the country whose players are idolized and emulated. How can an adulterer be made to lead such an organization? The PBA already has many woes as outlined by Gary, who owns the Basketball Exchange Blog. In the same blog entry, Gary reprints the whole article on Noli’s disbarment and cites the many reasons why he believes Noli should no longer be made to lead. Many sportswriters are of the sentiment that Noli should go. “How can he expect to penalize
November 30th, -0001 00:00
sakes! A sport that is well-loved by thousands of Filipino youth all over the country whose players are idolized and emulated. How can an adulterer be made to lead such an organization? The PBA already has many woes as outlined by Gary, who owns the Basketball Exchange Blog. In the same blog entry, Gary reprints the whole article on Noli’s disbarment and cites the many reasons why he believes Noli should no longer be made to lead. Many sportswriters are of the sentiment that Noli should go. “How can he expect to penalize
August 2nd, 2007 20:28
I don’t think it will change anything. Even before he was appointed PBA Commissioner, everyone already knew there was this case of adultery filed against him. I thought because of this, he wouldn’t be appointed Commish but the PBA Board were impressed with him and his passion for the sport that is why he was appointed. However, after his PBA career is over, I wonder what is Eala going to do?
August 2nd, 2007 21:05
It would be a very sad reflection on our society if a person who has been found guilty of such a crime continue to hold on to such a lofty and influential post.
August 3rd, 2007 08:45
you know what, you’re right John. I think I’m the only one who thinks that he’d actually resign.
I guess I’m living in another century.
August 4th, 2007 09:09
[...] err, Layman Noli Eala got some plans for the RP Team. SO too the PBA Board, they got a plan too, for Noli Eala. [...]
August 6th, 2007 23:41
Great post! I linked this to my own musings on Noli-gate. Check http://nancydrewandme.blogspot.com/2007/08/trouble-with-being-noli-eala.html
August 7th, 2007 19:58
Well what do you know. He quit.
August 8th, 2007 01:56
he didn’t quit gary. he was forced to resign. rather than face the ignominy of being the first commissioner to be given the axe, he chose to resign. elmer yanga, big j, dr. j andy jao, and tommy manotoc are rumored to be candidates for the vacant spot. i personally like former crispa coach tommy manotoc because he seems to have a lot of great ideas that can be used to further improve the league. let the big j coach air21.
August 8th, 2007 10:02
forced to resign = quit.
August 8th, 2007 10:47
force to resign is not = to quitting
August 8th, 2007 11:51
hay nako. sige na nga guys. you win :)
August 8th, 2007 17:35
well, good for him. This serves as good example for men who commit adultery and feel that it is their right to do so and nobody should question it. BUTI NGA !
August 10th, 2007 14:58
hay naku! this isn’t the first time na nangyari sa sanlibutan! Kalabaw nga nagkakamali..tao pa kaya? Isa lang mali talaga ni Noli dito…bakit kasi hindi mo iningatan, tsong! yan tuloy, na bulyaso ka! Pero, hindi pa huli ang lahat para sa ‘yo, Noli. Marami pang ibang babae dyan! Hala…ano pa ba ang problema..wala ka na sa PBA eh!
August 15th, 2007 10:02
you know what’s sad? This story is really old and his whole family already knew way before it came out on the news. They just decided to keep it to themselves.
You should feel for his family :( they had the most horrible situation
August 24th, 2007 18:36
People must be careful in throwing words against Eala, they should be thankful that they were not in the shoe of these people whom i believe were in real hard times as they are being persecuted left and right. For one, their only sin is that they fell in love at the wrong time, but falling in love per se cannot be considered as crime.
October 24th, 2007 10:18
The Law and Human Foibles
The law can be the most boring subject in the entire encyclopedia. This is especially true when obscurantists and shysters quibble about the finer points of the law, forgetting the realities that brought them to the case in the first place.
But once in a while we come across cases that remind us the whys and wherefores of the law. This is one of those cases, now brought to the US Supreme Court for determination and posted in the Supreme Court of United States Blog (Scotusblog):
http://www.scotusblog.com/wp/uncategorized/an-ancient-wrong-and-the-constitution/
You might recall that erstwhile PBA Commissioner Noli Eala was recently disbarred by the Philippine Supreme Court for having an adulterous affair. That case brought to fore this question – should courts penalize a married man – who, incidentally, happened to be a lawyer – for being in love with a married woman? There was no allegation nor was there proof that Mr. Eala had used his knowledge and skills as a lawyer in order to deceive anyone about his affair.
This is not to condone the actions of Mr. Eala. He could and should have been prosecuted under the criminal law for adultery, as well as under civil law for damages (alienation of affection is a cause of action for damages under the Civil Code). Lovers, true or purely carnal, after all have to pay the price for breaking social mores – and even family politics, as in the classic case of the Montagues and Capulets. That is the tragedy of love. But to strip Eala of his profession when there was neither allegation nor proof that he misused or abused his being a lawyer seems a little skewed to me.
It will be very interesting to follow the case at the US Supreme Court and compare how it resolves that case with the Eala disbarment case.
November 11th, 2007 13:47
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January 22nd, 2008 11:12
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