Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno could be the key

De Lima also testified that Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, in her dissent to the issuance of the Nov. 15 TRO, wrote about certain irregularities that made it appear that the TRO was immediately effective.

Though the SC, in a Feb. 14 resolution, has prohibited justices and court personnel from appearing in Corona’s impeachment trial, the prosecution hopes that Sereno would volunteer to testify on the irregularities she mentioned in her dissent.

Bayan Muna Rep. Neri Colmenares, a member of the prosecution panel, said the Senate impeachment court should challenge the resolution since it is an “attempt at cover-up” and it bars senator-judges from searching for the truth.

He said the SC issuance prevents court personnel from testifying on simple administrative matters such as the time the TRO resolution was issued and announced, the date and time the Arroyos complied with one or two of the TRO’s three conditions, and the date and time De Lima was furnished a copy of the TRO.

“The SC wants to prevent the truth from coming out. We believe that the Feb. 14 resolution is unconstitutional,” Colmenares said.