Davao City Councilor Luna Maria Dominique Acosta confirmed on Tuesday that the law firm representing the petitioners blocking the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte already received the Motion for Reconsideration recently filed by the House of Representatives before the Supreme Court (SC) and will be studying it thoroughly.
“As one of the petitioners and lawyers under the law firm of Torreon and Partners representing the petitioners, I can confirm that the law firm has already received the Motion for Reconsideration filed by the House of Representatives to the Supreme Court. We received it yesterday. Na scan ko personally kagabi, but we will study it thoroughly these coming days,” Acosta said during Pulong Pulong sa Dabawenyos.
The HoR, through the Office of the Solicitor General, filed an MNR on Monday asking the Supreme Court (SC) to reverse its ruling on the vice president’s impeachment case.
The House explained that it did not violate the constitutional one-year bar when it impeached the vice president in December last year.
According to Acosta, the law firm representing the petitioners is waiting for the order from the Court on whether they will answer the MNR or during the oral argument.
Acosta added that whatever the decision of the Court, the law firm is ready.
“After we received the order of the SC, we’re waiting to see if they will ask us to comment or kung mag derecho na ba sa oral argument? But whatever the order of the SC will be, the law firm of Torreon and Partners, which is representing the petitioners in this case, is always ready to answer whatever questions may arise. So when we receive the order from the SC kung mag comment of mag oral argument doon na kami mag start. But we are starting the research and everything,” Acosta said.
The SC En Banc ruled that the Articles of Impeachment against the vice president were barred by the one-year rule under the Constitution, which reason why the Senate could not acquire jurisdiction over the complaint and could not hold impeachment proceedings last month.
Apart from the one-year ban, the SC En Banc also found the impeachment complaint against the vice president violated her right to due process, as enshrined in the Bill of Rights of the Constitution.
