Corona Lawyers Hit Back At Critics, House Prosecutors
The camp of impeached Chief Justice Renato Corona on Friday appealed to critics of the magistrate not to easily pass judgment on the character of the members of his legal team.
In a press briefing at the Ateneo Law School campus in Makati, defense lawyers said Corona's critics should refrain from being "judgmental" and learn to respect the position and opinion of both parties in the impeachment case.
"Ang problema sa ilang mga kababayan natin, pagtayo pa lang namin hinuhusgahan kaagad kami. That's in excess. That's going beyond the line," defense lawyer and spokesman Tranquil Salvador III told reporters.
The lawyers' statement came amid reports quoting Black and White Movement convenor Leah Navarro as saying that Corona's defense lawyers might get favors from the Supreme Court in the future simply because they are lawyering for the chief justice.
"Masama bang tumayo sa tama? Sila ay may tinatayuan din na kung ano ang tingin nila ay tama. At kami din ay tumatayo lang sa tingin namin na tama. Kaya sana huwag naman nila husgahan ang aming pagtayo," Salvador said when asked to react to Navarro's pronouncements.
Atty. Karen Jimeno, another defense spokesperson, said the public should not easily lose their trust in the government. "Parang hindi na tayo naniniwala sa mga institusyon... kapag iniisip nila kaagad na kapag may ginawa ka ay may kapalit kaagad," she said.
