MANILA, Philippines -- Lawyers of Chief Justice Renato Corona said their client’s condition was in God’s hands and they would accept the decision if the Senate makes good on its threat to strike the impeached magistrate’s testimony and rule on his case should he fail to appear at Wednesday’s hearing.
Nevertheless, lawyer Rico Quicho, a spokesman for the defense, said they continued to hope that Corona would pull through and be cleared of the charges against him.
Corona, a diabetic who also has a history of heart bypasses, is confined at the intensive care unit of the Medical City hospital in Pasig City after he suffered hypoglycemia during his testimony on Tuesday.
His abrupt exit from the Senate session hall angered Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile who issued the ultimatum for him to show up on Wednesday or have his testimony stricken and the case decided on.
However, Corona’s doctors would not allow him to go to the Senate, saying he needed to be monitored over the next 48 hours because he faced the risk of heart attack.
“Kung matutuloy ang desisyon ni Senate President na kapag hindi makaharap si Chief Justice Corona mamaya ay i-strike out ‘yung kaniyang testimonya at magdedesisyon na sila, marangal po naming tatanggapin iyan (If the Senate President’s decision to strike out his testimony and decide on the case should Chief Justice Corona fail to appear, we will accept it honorably),” Quicho told Radyo Singko’s Punto Asintado.
“‘Yung kalagayan ni Chief Justice ngayon ay nasa kamay na ng Panginoon sapagkat ang sakit naman ho ay talagang di naman inaasahang pangyayari ‘yan, kung talagang ganoon po, ay maluwag nating tatanggapin iyan (The condition of the Chief Justice is now in the hands of God because no one really expected him to fall ill, and if that is the case, we will openly accept that),” he added.
But he said: “Kung ebidensya lang ang pagbabasehan, matindi ang aking paniniwala na wala talagang ebidensya. Pangalawa, kung mayroon man silang sinasabing ginawa ni Chief Justice, ito po ay di impeachable offense, iyon po ang aking paniniwala (If evidence is the only basis, I firmly believe that there really is none. Second, if there is any truth to what they say the Chief Justice did, this is not an impeachable offense, this is what I believe).” (Romsanne Ortiguero, InterAksyon.com)
source: interaksyon.com