A GROWING number of new bar passers and young lawyers have been joining the Public Attorney’s Office in their desire to serve the poor sector of society, its chief, Atty. Persida Rueda-Acosta, revealed.
Rueda-Acosta told Good Riddance that she’s extra-delighted upon knowing that more lawyers, especially those that passed the bar exams last year, have shown interest to be part of PAO in order to serve the indigents and underprivileged who have no access to legal representation and assistance.
The chief public attorney said, however, that it’s not surprising when more young lawyers would want to be part of the PAO team, saying they’re aware that the agency is now hugely different than it was in the past two decades.
She recalled that she couldn’t imagine the demoralizing conditions of PAO lawyers and the agency, itself, when she assumed its top post nearly 25 years ago for lack of budget for the salary of the personnel and its operational expenses, among others.
Rueda-Acosta has been hugely credited for introducing various programs and reforms in the agency specifically the passage of the law – Republic Act 9406 – which effectively reorganized and strengthened the PAO, which used to be called the Citizen’s Legal Assistance Office (CLAO), as it enhanced its capacity as well as autonomy from the Department of Justice.
The first of a kind in the history of the Philippine justice sector, a survey in late 2021 conducted by the Social Weather Station showed that PAO and its lawyers garnered the highest net trust rating.
The PAO chief has since credited the recognitions and other multiple awards she and her agency have received over the years to its personnel particularly the public attorneys who have shown dedication in serving and helping the indigents.
During a ceremony held late last month, Rueda-Acosta and other key officials led the orientation and oath-taking of 146 new PAO lawyers, 61 of them were 2024 bar passers.
Some 38 non-lawyers also took their oath and underwent similar orientation seminars along with the public lawyers, according to PAO.
