…to seek anew relief from SC

MANILA, Philippines - The defense of Chief Justice Renato Corona said they have “full faith” in the impeachment court in shielding itself from outside pressures.

In an interview with ANC, defense lawyer Dennis Manalo said, “It’s very clear to us that senator-judges are doing their best to come out with a process that has some integrity.”

This is the reason why the defense came out on Sunday to reveal information, coming from a “reliable source”, that Malacañang is trying to bribe some senator-judges into snubbing the Supreme Court-issued temporary restraining order on the opening of the alleged dollar bank accounts of Corona.

“We are throwing this in because we want to protect the integrity of the process…We needed to come out to stop any dire consequences," he said.

Asked what they would do should senator-judges compel them to reveal their source, Manalo said they will raise the lawyer-client privilege, a legal concept covered also by Philippine laws. This concept protects the communication between lawyer and client.

He denied insinuations that what they got was mere hearsay. “If you check laws, including the Anti-Graft Law, we allow complaints coming from anonymous sources.”

“Should the [information] just be snubbed by people in government who are tasked to implement the laws?” he asked.

He said they would understand if senator-judges will call for an executive session. “If they find reason to act on this particular matter, then they will make the call and act accordingly.”

Asked if they will allow themselves into the executive session, he said: "We can discuss."

Cross-examination

Manalo admitted that despite all these, “there are circumstances where elements of due process are already affected, such as the process of presentation of evidence.”

He noted that some senator-judges are already doing the cross-examination, which is the prosecution’s sole responsibility.

“Some senator-judges have exhibited acts bordering on cross-examination, where they are asking probing…confrontational questions,” he said. Nowhere in the rules of court, or any court for that matter, that a judge can do a cross-examination, he said.

“Judges can clarify points, but eliciting evidence, that’s a totally unchartered territory,” he said.

This is another reason why they would go to the Supreme Court anew.

“We will file a supplemental motion, we will bring up the issue of fairness,” he said.

He said that they were already forced to go to the high court because issues of law and procedure are being forgotten.

He noted there were previous six petitions questioning the legality of the impeachment trial, which the high court did not act upon.

“We found it necessary to go to the SC already,” he said.

On Wednesday, the defense asked that the SC halt the proceedings. The SC has yet to act on the matter absent the comments from affected parties.