Senate rejects evidence on Corona's PAL 'perks'

By KIMBERLY JANE TAN, GMA News

Published March 12, 2012 3:12pm

The Senate, sitting as the impeachment court, on Monday decided not to admit evidence on the alleged special privileges granted by the Philippine Airlines (PAL) to Chief Justice Renato Corona.

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III, reading the impeachment court's ruling, said they shall disallow the admission of evidence on the accusation that Corona allegedly received benefits from PAL while the company had cases pending before the high tribunal.

"The tender of excluded evidence is disallowed for being improper as these documents have already been excluded by the court because they tend to prove bribery... a crime not alleged in Article III of the Articles of Impeachment," Sotto said during the resumption of the trial.

Article III accuses Corona of having “committed culpable violations of the Constitution and betrayed the public trust by failing to meet and observe the stringent standards under Article VIII, Section 7(3) of the Constitution that provides [a] member of the judiciary must be a person of proven competence, integrity, probity, and independence in allowing the Supreme Court to Act on mere letters filed by a counsel which caused the issuance of flip-flopping decisions in final and executory cases; in creating an excessive entanglement with Mrs. Arroyo through her appointment of his wife to office; and in discussing with litigants regarding cases pending before the Supreme Court.”

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, presiding officer of the impeachment court, had earlier prevented the prosecution from presenting a witness under the same article.

Because of this, only one witness was presented under Article III -- Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (FASAP) president Robert Anduiza, who blamed Corona for the recall order on FASAP's 13-year-old labor dispute against PAL. Reiterated ruling on Corona bank accounts

Also on Monday, the Senate reiterated its ruling denying the defense's motion to suppress evidence on Corona's bank accounts.

Last week, Enrile was quoted as saying: "The court has arrived at a decision and ruling that it will deny the [defense's] motion to suppress and accept the evidence [on Corona's bank accounts] for the consideration of the court in connection with Article II of the Articles of Impeachment."

"Whatever evidence presented with respect to bank accounts they're all accepted, admitted," he added.

Also on Monday, Enrile denied the motion of the defense panel for the impeachment court to formally dismiss Articles I, IV, V, VI, and VIII of the Articles of Impeachment, which had earlier been dropped by the prosecutors.

But Enrile said that the senator-judges have a "clear understanding" that no evidence from the prosecution and defense will be received by the impeachment court on Articles I, IV, V, VI, and VIII.

"The members of the impeachment court will not render any vote on Article I, IV, V, VI, and VIII and that no verdict of the impeachment court will be rendered on Articles I, IV, V, VI, and VIII," he said.

The defense team, meanwhile, was ordered to submit its sequence of presentation of evidence.

"In order to have orderly proceedings the defense is hereby ordered to comply," said Enrile. — RSJ, GMA News

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