MANILA - Malacañang on Tuesday said it respects the decision of the Supreme Court to uphold the removal of Maria Lourdes Sereno as chief justice via a quo warranto decision.

Voting 8-6, the magistrates stood by its earlier decision on the quo warranto petition filed by Solicitor General Jose Calida, saying Sereno's plea lacks merit. The high court said their decision is final.

• Supreme Court rules CJ Sereno ouster final: source

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said President Rodrigo Duterte, as chief executive, will implement the decision. He also called for unity among Filipinos, even as he admitted that the SC decision will still be met with protests.

“Ang hinihingi ng Presidente ngayon ay magsama-sama na muli ang sambayanang Pilipino. Malinaw ang desisyon ng Korte Suprema. Ang Korte Suprema ang pinal na arbiter. We have to succumb to the decision of the SC,” Roque said in a press briefing.

(The President is asking for the Filipinos to unite. The decision of the Supreme Court is clear. The SC is the final arbiter and we have to succumb to its decision.)

“Tapos na ang pagiging Chief Justice ni Meilou Sereno (Sereno’s reign as chief justice is over). We wish her good luck in her everyday life as a private citizen,” he added.

Sereno was ousted for her failure to fully disclose all her statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth when she applied for the Supreme Court's top post in 2012.

In her motion, Sereno said the ruling should be null and void because the 6 justices who voted for her ouster lost their impartiality to decide on the case. She also insisted that a chief justice may only be removed through impeachment.

The ousted Chief Justice earlier sought the inhibition of her 6 former colleagues in the Supreme Court for the supposed bias they showed when they testified before a House committee tackling her impeachment. But the high court rejected Sereno's plea.

The Supreme Court granted the ouster petition in an 8-6 vote. In another vote, 9 justices said quo warranto was the proper remedy to remove Sereno, while 5 said it was not.

Protests followed the ruling, with critics calling it an attack on judicial independence.