Senate to resume Corona impeachment trial Monday

Chief Justice Renato Corona PHOTO BY RICHARD REYES

MANILA, Philippines—The Senate is set to resume on Monday the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona amid a parallel pressure coming from no less than President Aquino for the magistrate to explain his alleged $10-million bank account now being investigated by the Ombudsman.

The President, who has been openly campaigning for the removal of Corona, said on Sunday the Chief Justice had “no choice” but speak up on the allegation.

“The minute he doesn’t explain it, the presumption (that it is) ill-gotten wealth remains,” Aquino told reporters at the sidelines of the 70th commemoration of the Fall of Bataan in Corregidor.

The President said keeping mum on the allegation could not be an option for Corona. “That is the law and he is the chief magistrate. Perhaps, he should be the first one to comply,” he said, but admitted he was relying only on media reports on the allegedly $10-million account.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported on the Ombudsman investigation shortly after the Supreme Court ruled with finality on the Hacienda Luisita, a vast sugar estate owned by the President’s family. The Supreme Court ordered the distribution of nearly 5,000 hectares to farmers using 1989 land valuation.

Corona flatly denied the existence of a $10-million bank account and alleged that the investigation was meant to get back at him for the Hacienda Luisita ruling.

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said the Ombudsman could conduct a separate investigation on Corona despite the ongoing impeachment proceedings.

“(The investigations) can be simultaneous,” he said in Filipino in a radio interview with DZBB, noting that the Ombudsman could prosecute “people, including impeachable officers, if they violate the law.”

“As long as there is a case—impeachment or no impeachment—they can file a case against anybody who is a government employee,” he added. He said only the President enjoyed immunity from suit while in office, but could be investigated just the same.

At 2 p.m. on Monday, Enrile will bang the gavel signaling the resumption of the impeachment trial, which began more than two months ago. But with the proceedings keeping senators away from legislative work, he said he would prefer that the trial be completed within the month.

Enrile said he would be willing to extend trial until 10 p.m. or even midnight daily if only to meet his proposed deadline.

“If at my age, I’m already 88 years old, I could conduct a hearing until 12 midnight, perhaps the lawyers could also do it,” he said.

“I will suggest to the lawyers, both to the prosecution and the defense, that if possible, we finish the case before the end of the month because it is already affecting many bills.”

Defense lawyer Ramon Esguerra earlier said his camp was ready to wrap up its presentation of evidence in two to three weeks. He said the defense was willing to forgo of witnesses who would only “corroborate” the testimony of other witnesses.

Former Manila Mayor Lito Atienza will return to the witness stand Monday afternoon to respond to further questions from senator-judges on his testimony last March. Atienza had testified for the defense on the Manila city government’s purchase of a Basa Guidote Enterprises Inc. (BGEI) property in 2001 for P34.7 million.

For the defense, the amount explained the existence of bank accounts in the name of Corona and his wife, Cristina, which were not declared in his statements of assets, liabilities and net worth. Cristina had received the money in behalf of the family-owned BGEI.

Besides Atienza, defense counsels are awaiting the return of Justice Secretary Leila De Lima, who earlier testified for the prosecution. The Senate had subpoenaed De Lima, who made a public pronouncement that she saw no need to take the witness stand again. Last week, the prosecution filed a motion to quash the subpoena.

But Enrile said on Sunday that he would not withdraw the subpoena and that the defense could assert its right to compulsory process. He said: “Secretary De Lima understands this.”

Enrile said it was not enough that De Lima had already been cross-examined by the defense when she appeared for the prosecution. With the new subpoena, he said she could be qualified as a hostile witness for the defense.

De Lima’s testimony was earlier ruled as hearsay. She tackled the dissenting opinion of Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, an appointee of Aquino, on the Supreme Court temporary restraining order that would have allowed former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to leave the country for medical treatment.