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Despite the defense panel's motion for him to step down as Senator-judge, Franklin Drilon said he will not inhibit himself from the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona.
“I will not inhibit. There is no basis for the motion. I am not affected by the inhibition,” Drilon said in an interview on Thursday.
Corona’s defense team submitted to the impeachment court a motion to inhibit Drilon, accusing the senator-judge of “casting a doubt on the integrity of the impeachment trial process and even the impartiality of the judges themselves.”
The defense pointed out that the “interference” and “pressure” exerted by Drilon resulted in having Corona’s statements of assets, liabilities and net worth presented to the court, which the prosecution was unable to accomplish on its own.
Corona’s camp added that Drilon continued to “display his partiality” in the succeeding sessions “by directly causing the introduction of evidence from a document intended to cast doubts on the role of the chief justice about the acquisition of the property by his daughter.”
But Drilon debunked these accusations saying, “That’s what they say. That’s a conclusion on their part.”
“A judge must take every effort to avoid even the appearance of partiality. Every measure must be taken to guard against the erosion of public confidence in the impeachment trial of CJ Corona,” the defense’s motion to inhibit stated.
However, Drilon noted that the motion to inhibit should be addressed to the senator-judge involved and not to the court.
He added that the decision to inhibit lies to the discretion of the senator-judge, and further stressed, "I will not inhibit."
Some parts of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s testimonies are merely hearsay, the impeachment court ruled Thursday.
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