Lead prosecutor denies preempting Senate on evidence

DEED OF SALE House panel Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., (left) shows a deed of sale of a Bellagio unit in Taguig City allegedly belonging to Chief Justice Corona and his wife. At right is Rep. Miro Quimbo, prosecution panel spokesperson. MARIANNE BERMUDEZ

The head prosecutor at Chief Justice Renato Corona’s impeachment trial on Wednesday denied that he and his colleagues were preempting the senator-judges in disclosing to the public a piece of evidence against the accused.

“How can the action of the House prosecution preempt the impeachment trial when there is no entry of appearance yet by the prosecutors before the Senate?” Iloilo Representative Niel Tupas Jr. told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Tupas said that the Senate formalities of calling and accepting the House of Representatives’ prosecution panel was scheduled on January 16, and that there was even a motion from the defense to set a date for a preliminary hearing on the motion to dismiss the impeachment complaint based on a technicality.

“Also, the House has not even received a notice for a pretrial conference. So how could the House preempt the impeachment court? We never touched on the merits of the case. We only stated a fact as alleged in the complaint,” he said.

Bayan Muna Representative Neri Javier Colmenares, one of the prosecutors, said all parties recognized that the trial had yet to start. He pointed out that the Corona camp had even sought a preliminary hearing.

Colmenares also said he was confident that the Senate would not be swayed by the public opinion generated by the disclosure of evidence.

Duty

Marikina Representative Romero Quimbo, the panel’s spokesperson and a former trial lawyer, echoed his colleagues’ remarks in a news briefing.

He rejected the idea that Tupas’ disclosure of evidence was meant to mold public opinion in favor of the prosecution.

“The impeachment is a process that affects every single individual as the case involves betrayal of public trust,” Quimbo later told the Inquirer.

“We, therefore, believe that it is the duty of the prosecution to always inform and update the public on what’s going on,” he said.