The new year will welcome Chief Justice Renato Corona with an impeachment trial, as soon as Senate resumes session.
Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III has moved to adjourn the impeachment trial to January 16 next year at 2:00 in the afternoon when the regular session resumes after the holidays.
This came as the the upper House convened as an impeachment court for Corona.
All 23 senators, wearing their robes, took oath as “impartial” senator-judges of the impeachment trial.
For now, Corona is given “10 calendar days” to respond to the articles of impeachment submitted by the House of Representatives which will be served to him tomorrow, said Lawyer Valentina Cruz, spokesperson of the impeachment court.
Earlier, the chief justice publicly answered the accusations against him, even hitting President Benigno Aquino III.
Though the senators saw nothing wrong with Corona defending himself, they said that the trial is the proper venue to answer all the charges against him.
“I wish he will stay cool, not lose his equilibrium and maintain the dignity of the office of the chief justice. There is a proper time to answer all the charges and that’s in the impeachment court,” Senator Franklin Drilon said.
“He should formalize his answer by filing a written answer before the impeachment tribunal,” said Senator Koko Pimentel.
