For sending at least forty criminals to the gallows, former Judge and now the 46th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines Diosdado Peralta y Madarang was formerly known as the Philippines’ “hanging judge.”

Last October 24, Peralta swore before President Rodrigo Roa Duterte that he would faithfully dispense justice to those in need and ensure that the laws are judiciously complied with.

Peralta is an old-timer in the Supreme Court, having served as a prosecutor and thereafter judge in the Ilocos and worked his way towards the top. One of the things which Peralta became known for was he was the one who penned the controversial Sandiganbayan ruling allowing the remains of the late president Ferdinand Marcos to the Libingan ng mga Bayani. Back then, he was a presiding justice of the Sandiganbayan.

The 67 year old jurist is reportedly close to former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. He will serve as Chief Justice until March 27, 2022, a few months before the 2022 Presidential elections.