UST CIVIL Law Dean Nilo Divina said on Wednesday he is not stepping down from his post after the Senate concluded its probe on the hazing death of law freshman Horacio “Atio” Castillo III and asked for his and other Aegis Juris lawyers’ disbarment.
Divina said there was no basis for him to resign as law dean, denying claims of his involvement or negligence in the hazing rites that killed Atio in September of last year.
“There is no basis for stepping down. As I said I am committed to the University and the students,” Divina said in a text message to the Varsitarian.
In a statement released Wednesday, Divina said he helped in the investigation on Atio’s case and convinced the Aegis Juris fratmen involved to surrender and to attend Senate hearings.
“I understand that as Dean who happens to also be a member of the Fraternity, all my actions, despite conscious efforts on my part to be totally impartial, will naturally be subjected to extraordinary scrutiny. Nonetheless, I remain confident of vindication regardless of the accusations hurled or charges that have been filed or may still be filed,” the statement read.
The Senate has requested the Supreme Court to take immediate disciplinary action against Divina and Aegis Juris alumni, saying they were liable for “grossly immoral conduct,” lacked the “decency expected from lawyers” and made a “mockery of the legal profession.”
The panel, led by Sen. Panfilo Lacson, did not buy Divina’s claim that he had been long inactive from the Aegis Juris after assuming the UST law deanship in 2009, as photos showed him attending the fraternity’s anniversaries, and his acts before and after Atio’s death.
READ: Senate wants UST law dean disbarred for ‘mockery of the legal profession’ in Atio’s death
