*Dr. Rodolfo John Ortiz Teope, PhD, EdD, DM
In our society today, we have become so fascinated with titles. Kapag may “Atty.” sa unahan ng pangalan, automatic na iniisip ng marami na siya na ang pinakamay alam sa batas. There is absolutely nothing wrong with respecting lawyers. In fact, we should. Passing the Bar Examination is one of the most difficult academic and professional achievements in the country. Lawyers devote years studying constitutional law, criminal law, civil law, taxation, jurisprudence, and legal ethics. They deserve every bit of recognition they receive.
But respect for lawyers should never become disrespect for legislators who have spent their lives writing the very laws that lawyers later study, argue, defend, and interpret.
I find it ironic that sometimes we equate education solely with classrooms. We forget that there is another university in life called experience. Walang diploma ang karanasan, pero napakahirap nitong kunin. It is earned through victories, failures, debates, negotiations, criticism, and countless hours of public service. Twenty nine years inside the Senate cannot simply be measured by the number of calendars that have passed. It represents thousands of committee hearings, countless plenary debates, bicameral conference meetings, constitutional discussions, budget deliberations, policy negotiations, and actual lawmaking.
The Philippine Constitution itself speaks loudly on this matter without even saying a word. It never required senators to become lawyers before they could legislate. It never required them to pass the Bar before they could vote on national policies. If the framers of the Constitution believed that only lawyers were qualified to make laws, they could have easily written that requirement. They did not. Instead, they deliberately opened the Senate to Filipinos from different professions because they understood that laws govern every sector of society, not only the legal profession.
Imagine if Congress consisted entirely of lawyers. Who would bring the voice of farmers who understand agriculture better than anyone? Who would speak for teachers who know the realities inside the classroom? Who would represent doctors who understand healthcare beyond legal theory? Who would explain the concerns of engineers, scientists, entrepreneurs, artists, soldiers, police officers, and ordinary workers? Democracy was never intended to become an exclusive club of one profession.
The Senate is not a courtroom. It is not a law office. It is the people’s chamber. Every senator carries the mandate of millions of Filipinos regardless of whether he is a lawyer, an economist, a physician, a broadcaster, or an educator. Ang mandato nila ay hindi nanggagaling sa Bar Examination. Nanggagaling ito sa taong bumoto sa kanila.
This is why Senator Sotto’s statement deserves careful reflection instead of ridicule.
There is something that textbooks cannot teach. A lawyer studies legislative intent by reading committee reports and congressional records. A veteran legislator remembers legislative intent because he personally participated in creating it. He remembers why one provision was inserted, why another provision was removed, who opposed it, who supported it, what compromises were made, and what social problem the law intended to solve. That institutional memory is priceless.
Hindi ito nababasa lamang sa libro. Ito ay nabubuo sa aktwal na paggawa ng batas.
History supports this truth. Many of the world’s greatest democratic leaders were not necessarily lawyers, yet they transformed their nations through legislation and public policy. Likewise, many brilliant lawyers never became effective legislators because lawmaking demands something beyond legal analysis. It requires political wisdom, public consultation, consensus building, compassion, negotiation, and the ability to balance competing interests for the common good.
Lawyers are trained to ask, “What does the law say?”
Legislators are constantly asking, “What should the law become?”
Those are two entirely different responsibilities.
One protects the law.
The other creates it.
Neither is superior to the other. They complement one another.
Perhaps what touched me most about Senator Sotto’s words was the humility behind them. He never claimed to be a lawyer. He never pretended to have attended law school. Instead, he simply reminded everyone that experience also deserves respect. There is wisdom accumulated through decades of serving the nation, just as there is wisdom accumulated through years of legal education.
Sa panahon ngayon, parang mabilis tayong humusga. Kapag walang titulo, iniisip agad natin na kulang ang kaalaman. Pero maraming tao ang nagtapos sa pinakamataas na paaralan ng buhay. Ang pangalan ng paaralang iyon ay serbisyo publiko.
Twenty nine years of making laws is not an ordinary accomplishment. It means surviving different administrations, working with colleagues from different political beliefs, witnessing constitutional crises, participating in national reforms, and helping shape legislation that affects more than one hundred million Filipinos. That experience cannot be erased simply because another person has a Bar license.
Even inside the judiciary, lawyers disagree with one another every single day. Trial courts disagree with appellate courts. The Court of Appeals sometimes disagrees with the Supreme Court. Even Supreme Court Justices themselves write dissenting opinions because intelligent legal minds can honestly arrive at different conclusions. If lawyers themselves can disagree on the meaning of the law, then surely a non lawyer with almost three decades of legislative experience deserves to be heard with the same respect.
Minsan kasi, ang problema natin ay hindi kakulangan ng talino. Ang problema natin ay kakulangan ng paggalang sa karanasan ng iba.
There is a saying that knowledge tells us what is written, but wisdom tells us why it was written. Lawyers are masters in interpreting statutes and jurisprudence. Veteran legislators often possess something equally valuable, the living memory of why those statutes were born in the first place.
I therefore believe that Senator Tito Sotto’s statement was never about diminishing lawyers. It was about elevating the value of public service, institutional memory, and democratic experience. It was a reminder that the making of laws is itself a lifelong education. Every committee hearing becomes a classroom. Every plenary debate becomes another lecture. Every difficult vote becomes another examination. Every enacted law becomes another chapter in the nation’s history.
At the end of the day, a Bar license certifies that a person is qualified to practice law. Twenty nine years of lawmaking certifies something different. It tells the Filipino people that this individual has devoted a significant part of his life to shaping the very legal framework upon which our nation stands.
Perhaps that is why Senator Sotto’s statement resonated with so many Filipinos. It reminded us that while degrees open doors, experience builds nations. While lawyers preserve the rule of law, veteran legislators help write the story of that law. And sometimes, the person who has spent decades building the bridge understands its foundation just as deeply as the engineer who later studies its blueprint.
That is not an argument against lawyers.
It is an argument for giving experience the respect it has rightfully earned.
*****************************************
_______________________________________
Dear friends,
*About the author:
