21 JULY 2015 The Supreme Court (SC) en banc started on Tuesday the oral arguments on the case of Torre de Manila, dubbed as the "photobomber" of the monument of national hero Dr. Jose P. Rizal in Manila. Acting Chief Justice Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio presided over the oral arguments to hear the arguments of the petitioners Knights of Rizal (KOR). Chief Justice Maria Lourdes P. Aranal Sereno and Associate Justice Bienvenido L. Reyes are on wellness leave while Associate Justice Jose P. Perez has inhibited himself from the case. Atty. William L. Jasarino, counsel of the petitioners KOR, presented the arguments and used the Filipino language in his opening statement that lasted for 10 minutes. The petitioners maintained that Torre de Manila is destroying the monument of national hero Jose P. Rizal in Luneta Park, Manila. During the hearing, Jasarino showed the picture of the Rizal Monument during the time when Torre de Manila was still not there and he compared it to the current picture of Rizal Monument which already has a background of a tall building. Jasarino also showed another picture depicting their fears that the Rizal Monument will be surrounded with tall buildings and billboards if the construction of Torre de Manila will be allowed to continue. He argued that they filed the petition in consideration of Sections 14, 15 and 16 of Article 14 of the 1987 Constitution which pertain to the responsibility of the State to protect the historical and cultural heritage of the country. The Rizal Monument was declared by the National Museum as a "National Cultural Treasure" and because of this, the monument is protected by the following laws: * Republic Act No. 4846, or the "Cultural Properties Preservation and Protection Act." * R.A. No. 7356, or the "National Commission on Culture and the Arts." * R.A. No. 10066, or the "National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009," which provides protection to National Cultural Heritage. The petitioners also argued that Torre de Manila is considered as a "nuisance" because based on Article 694 of the Civil Code of the Philippines, "it destroys or brings about dismay to morality." They added that the project brings about dismay to every Filipino who is honoring the memories of Rizal. They further argued it was also clear that the Manila Zoning Ordinance was not complied with when Torre de Manila was constructed and that there was bad faith on the part of the developer and buyer because the construction was still continued even if there was already a controversy since the beginning. (PNA) http://ptvnews.ph/bottom-news-life2/11-11-nation-submenu/46188-knights-of-rizal-maintains-torre-de-manila-destroying-rizal-monument