PHNO-HL: JUDGMENT DAY: ACQUITTAL NEEDS 8 SENATE VOTES, CONVICTION NEEDS 16

JUDGMENT DAY: ACQUITTAL NEEDS 8
SENATE VOTES, CONVICTION NEEDS 16


[PHOTO - Moment of truth. This
empty chair symbolizes the intention of the impeachment complaint to remove
Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona.]
MANILA, MAY 29, 2012 (STANDARD) by Christine F. Herrera - BOTH
sides in the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona presented their
closing arguments Monday, but Senate President and Presiding Judge Juan Ponce
Enrile, who is seen to hold the swing vote, ended the hearing with questions to
the defense.
After both sides had completed their presentation, Enrile asked the defense
what damage would be done if a public official disclosed his dollar accounts
regardless of the confidentiality guaranteed by the Foreign Currency Deposits
Act.
Enrile reminded the court that while the law barred banks from disclosing
details of bank accounts, no such prohibition existed for the depositor, who was
free to waive the secrecy of his deposits.
"What is prohibited is for third parties to reveal it and that's why they're
penalized. But the depositor is not," Enrile said.
He then asked the defense if it felt Corona had been guilty of culpable
violation of the Constitution when he disregarded its provision ordering
officials to report their assets, liabilities and net worth— including their
dollar accounts.
The question was left unanswered—and will likely be the key when the senators
vote today to either acquit or convict the chief justice after a months-long
campaign by the Aquino administration to oust him from office.
The Palace, led by President Benigno Aquino III, had mounted a nationwide
effort and used the entire government machinery to oust Corona.
House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr., who was not a member of the prosecution
panel, delivered the closing statement that did not delve on the evidence
against Corona, but on his "character and moral fitness" to remain in office.

Since Day 1 of the trial, the senator-judges, saddled with a flawed
impeachment complaint and the prosecution's inability to deliver hard evidence
proving any high crime, seemed at a loss on whether Corona was guilty of
culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust as charged
by the House prosecutors.
Senator-judge Miriam Defensor Santiago, to the end, raised the question as to
the extent the court could penalize the chief justice and raised the possibility
of censure, reprimand or suspension.
But Enrile was also clear that the vote must only be to acquit or convict
Corona.
While many of the judges seemed to have already made up their minds to
convict, the defense hammered on the prosecution's failure to produce any
evidence against the chief justice, still hoping to win acquittal.
Enrile's vote is viewed as crucial as he is perceived to have his own bloc in
the Senate, including Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, Senate
Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III and Senator Gregorio Honasan.
The four votes could spell acquittal or conviction for Corona.
The prosecution needs 16 votes to convict Corona, who, as of this writing,
sources said only had sure four solid votes for acquittal: those of Santiago,
Joker Arroyo, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Manuel Villar.
Bringing in Enrile's bloc of four votes would grant Corona an acquittal, as
he only needs eight votes to win the trial.
But Villar, sources said, might vote for conviction since his wife Cynthia,
who is gunning for the Senate, was being wooed by the Palace to run under the
administration slate.
The prosecution, from the start, has insisted that the impeachment trial is a
"political exercise" with no less than the President leading the anti-Corona
campaign.
The prosecution also formed the 188 Movement, consisting of the 188 lawmakers
that signed the impeachment complaint that brought their campaign against the
chief justice to their home provinces.
But the prosecution immediately dropped the assertion that the impeachment
was a political exercise when they learned that Corona was being supported by
the influential Iglesia ni Cristo.
Malacañang was even quick to debunk rumors that the Feb. 28 rally of the
Iglesia was meant to support Corona, who denounced the Palace for attacking the
independence of the Supreme Court and threatening the system of checks and
balances that are key to a democracy.
On the eve of Corona's appearance before the Senate impeachment court, the
President himself went to see the leadership of the Iglesia to explain why the
government was pursuing the chief justice's ouster.
The Iglesia brings with it a solid vote of 8 million members nationwide that
the reelectionist senators—Francis Escudero, Loren Legarda, Antonio Trillanes
IV, Alan Peter Cayetano, Honasan and Aquilino Pimentel III—will also likely take
into account.
Escudero said he was not impressed by the closing arguments Monday, but the
folksy address of prosecutor and Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Farinas, who
dismissed Corona's explanations for not declaring his bank deposits as "palusot"
or excuses, would resonate.
The defense, on the other hand, stressed that the prosecution had failed to
bring in evidence to pin down Corona.
Defense counsels retired Justice Serafin Cuevas, Eduardo delos Reyes and
Dennis Manalo pointed out that the prosecution had failed to answer most
questions because they did not bother to cross-examine Corona when he went to
court to testify.
They said the prosecution was only successful in making innuendos and casting
doubt on Corona's dollar and peso accounts.
The prosecution asked the Senate impeachment court to convict Corona by
insisting that he failed to disclose "truthfully and accurately" his assets in
his statement of assets, liability and net worth the $2.4 million in dollar
accounts and P80.7 million in peso accounts that Corona said were not his but
co-mingled accounts from the members of his family.
Shortly before the hearing ended Monday, Enrile posed his questions to the
defense.
"What injury or prejudice may arise if a depositor who is public officer or
employee of a foreign currency deposit would include that deposit or the amount
represented by that deposit in his SALN?"
Cuevas said he was not sure what damage could be done, but mentioned the
threat of kidnapping as one possibility.
At this point, Enrile said the Foreign Currency Deposits Act merely barred
banks, not depositors, from revealing details of their accounts.
He then asked the defense if the constitutional provision on providing a
statement of assets, liabilities and net worth was a mandatory requirement that
all public officials had to obey.
"My next question is, if it is a sovereign command… will disobedience
constitute a culpable violation of the Constitution?" Enrile continued, using
the Latin root word "culpa" or "failure" to make his point.
He dismissed Cuevas' distinction about whether or not the failure was
intentional or out of negligence, saying it did not matter.
Before the hearing started, Enrile also took Cuevas to task for telling an
interview that they could file an appeal to the Supreme Court if Corona was
convicted, reminding him that the Senate had the sole power to try and decide
impeachment cases under the Constitution.
But Cuevas denied there was any plan to make an appeal.
"We're still waiting for the trial to be finished," he said.
Despite Enrile's questions, defense spokeswoman Karen Jimeno said she felt
the defense presented a very strong legal argument for acquittal.
Prosecutor Reynaldo Umali, on the other hand, said they were optimistic
Corona would be convicted. With Joel E. Zurbano (Published
in the Manila Standard Today newspaper on /2012/May/29)



Chief News Editor: Sol
Jose Vanzi

© Copyright, 2012 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE
NEWS ONLINE
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