Day 9: The hearing turns for the defense
31-Jan-12, 7:09 PM | Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, Abigail Kwok, and Karl John Reyes, InterAksyon.com
InterAksyon.com
The online news portal of TV5
MANILA, Philippines - Day 9 of the trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona turned for the defense when Megaworld Corp. explained the "reductions" in the price of the Bellagio penthouse that the chief justice got. Here are the highlights at the end of Day 9:
- Megaworld Corp. called the allegations that it substantially reduced price of Corona's Bellagio unit "completely baseless and malicious." Noli Hernandez, Megaworld vice president for marketing and sales, said that the company in fact lost three cases pending before the Supreme Court.
- The same Megaworld executive also explained that the "voluntary price reduction" was given to Corona because the unit was "water-damaged.
- At the same time, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said the prosecution panel can withdraw some of the eight articles of impeachment against the Chief Justice.
- Senator-judge Miriam Defensor-Santiago, on the other hand, said she will see the
trial through. She said she would ask the International Criminal Court, where she has been elected judge, to allow her to finish her duties here in the country.
- The defense panel has asked the impeachment court to allow it to present some 30 witnesses, among them a constitutional expert, several Supreme Court Justices, and several congressmen, including those in the prosecution.
- As the trial took a turn for the defense, some senator-judges were perceived to have come to the rescue of the prosecution.
