Jimeno defends her support for anti-Corona signature campaign in 2010

MANILA, Philippines—Defense spokesperson Karen Jimeno on Wednesday said that her being a signatory to a 2010 University of the Philippines College of Law Faculty statement against Chief Justice Renato Corona’s alleged midnight appointment should not be an issue in the impeachment trial.

She told reporters at a press briefing that she respected the Supreme Court’s decision despite her different interpretation of the law.

Jimeno explained that she taught law at the time she signed the statement, adding that she was surprised the issue was rehashed when “I would have gladly brought this up.”

Jimeno described herself as “objective” in that even if she started out with a different view on Corona’s appointment as chief magistrate, she respected the Supreme Court’s decision. She said that lawyers may not always agree on decisions of the high tribunal but that they should respect such decisions.

She maintained that her move to defend Corona was not a private crusade for the chief justice but a fight for the stability of the Supreme Court as an institution.

On Tuesday, a copy of the UP law faculty’s statement (impeachmentwatch.com/oh-karen) spread on the web, prompting netizens to question the defense spokesperson’s stand on the impeachment case.