MANILA, Philippines — A fifth petition was filed with the Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday seeking to stop the Senate, acting as an impeachment court, from proceeding with the trial of Chief Justice Renato C. Corona.

Lawyers Homobono Adaza and Alan Paguia claimed the eight articles of impeachment filed by the House of Representatives with the Senate violate provisions of the Constitution.

Adaza is a former assemblyman and Misamis Oriental governor, while Paguia had worked as counsel for former president Joseph Ejercito Estrada.

They asked the SC to issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) that would stop the senator-judges from commencing the trial on January 16.

Among other things, the two lawyers claimed that the impeachment complaint was not properly verified by the complainants when forwarded to the Senate.

Since the complaint was not verified as provided for by the rules and the Constitution, “the so called verified complaint’ is a mere scrap of paper with no legal effect,” they said.

They also said that Corona was denied due process and equal protection under the Constitution.

The two lawyers said the Senate gravely abused its discretion when it accepted the “unverified” complaint and set the impeachment complaint for trial.

The SC is still on its Christmas break and its three divisions will resume sessions on January 16 and the full court on January 17.

The four earlier petitions, which had also sought the issuance of a TRO, had been filed by tax informer Danilo Lihaylihay, lawyer Vladimir Cabigao, former Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) president Vicente Millora, and lawyer Oliver Lozano.

It is expected that the five petitions would be taken up by the SC in its full court session on January 17.

There are four possible actions from the SC: Consolidate the five cases, require comment on the part of the respondents, set the cases for oral arguments, or issue a TRO.

A total of 188 congressmen signed the impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Corona for violations of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, and graft and corruption.

In his answer, Corona asked the Senate to dismiss outright the complaint or, in the alternative, enter a judgment of not guilty on the charges.

The House of Representatives asked the Senate to deny Corona’s plea for the dismissal of the impeachment complaint, to proceed with the trial, and to render a guilty judgment.

Meanwhile, the 23 senators sitting as judges in the impeachment case against Corona plan to hold a pre-trial conference as part of efforts to facilitate the trial.

Senate impeachment court spokesperson Maria Valentina Cruz said the senator-judges want to know how many witnesses would appear at the trial and what documents would be presented by both the prosecution and defense panels.

“Gusto po naming mag-pre trial para ho medyo mapapabilis ang proseso. Para malaman din kung ano ang ebidensyang ipi-prisinta nila sa pre-trial (We want to conduct a pre-trial first to speed up the process. We also want to know what evidence will be presented in pre-trial),” Cruz told newsmen on Tuesday.

However, Cruz said the impeachment court would have to decide on Corona’s request to hold a preliminary hearing once Congress resumes on January 16.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson said there is nothing wrong with the Senate impeachment court conducting a pre-trial conference before the impeachment trial commences on Jan. 16.

“A pre-trial is a requisite to pool and reconcile the evidence that would be presented during the impeachment trial,” Lacson said in a text message.

“Conducting one would not take long. In fact, Senate secretary Emma Reyes can convene the court and just brief us senator-judges and we’ll see if we will approve,” the senator said.

Earlier, the legal team of Corona sought for the preliminary hearing last Thursday, saying that the supposed impeachment complaint is constitutionally infirm and defective because the 188 congressmen are unable to verify their signatures.

With the haste in the transmittal to the Senate, Corona’s camp doubted if each House member were able to fully read and understand the eight articles of impeachment files against him.

They also argued that verification was a Constitutional requirement.

But the members of the prosecution panel involved in the impeachment of Corona disputed these claims and said Corona was using a technicality to avoid or delay trial.

“After all, there were boasts of his powerhouse legal team, that he is ready and willing to face trial in the Senate and welcomes the opportunity to prove his innocence,” the panel said in the 38-page reply to Corona’s answer to the Senate summons in connection with the eight articles of impeachment against him.

Meanwhile, lawyers from at least 10 reputable law firms have volunteered their services to help the 11-man House panel in prosecuting Corona.

But Marikina City Rep. Federico Romero “Miro” Quimbo, spokesperson of the House prosecution panel, refused to identify the “popular legal practitioners in the country,” fearing this would affect the cases the lawyers are handling and pending before the High Court.

“They asked us to withhold their names because it will affect their profession, what they do for a living. They belong to law offices where they work with 26 or 12 other lawyers which also has pending cases before the Supreme Court,” Quimbo said.

Also at the forum, Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., chairman of the House justice committee, said the impeachment case against Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Mariano Del Castillo over alleged plagiarism would be resolved before the end of the month.

“We will proceed with Del Castillo impeachment. We are planning to determine the sufficiency of grounds on the first day of the resumption of Congress. The process on Del Castillo’s impeachment will be continued,” Tupas said.

In another development, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said it would watch Corona impeachment trial while demanding that his former patron, former President Arroyo would be prosecuted quickly as well.

KMP also said it would continue to press for the free distribution of Hacienda Luisita to farm workers consistent with unanimous verdict of the Supreme Court (SC).

“Corona’s impeachment should lead to the decisive indictment and punishment of former President Arroyo. At the same time, SC should muster the resolve to decide with finality the distribution of Hacienda Luisita to farmers and farm workers,” said KMP secretary general Danilo Ramos.

Ramos also claimed that “President Aquino aims to overturn the recent high court’s ruling to distribute Hacienda Luisita by ousting Corona and taking control of the SC.”

“We will closely keep an eye on the impeachment of the Chief Justice to ensure that former President Arroyo be held accountable for her crimes and, at the same time, pursue the free distribution of Hacienda Luisita to the farm workers,” Ramos said.

Meanwhile, Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said Malacañang will veer away from senator-judges to avoid suspicion of intrusion. (With reports from Rolly T. Carandang, Rio Rose Ribaya, Hannah L. Torregoza, Genalyn T. Kabiling, and Marvyn N. Benaning)