The 2009 Presidential LINGKOD BAYAN Awards is the highest category in the annual search by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) for outstanding government officials and workers in the country.

The Presidential Lingkod Bayan Award is conferred on to Justice NIMFA C. VILCHESfor her outstanding contributions in making justice available for all and her advocacies on women and children’s rights. She carried on with the Supreme Court’s Justice on Wheels program, giving free legal aid and assistance to the poor and needy, which expedited the hearing of minor cases and led to the release of more than a thousand detained prisoners. She spearheaded information and education campaign for farmers, fisherfolks and indigenous people of their rights under the law. In her 26 years of public service in the Supreme Court, she has displayed professionalism and efficiency in the execution of her responsibilities.