MANILA, Philippines – In a bid to “strengthen further” lawyer Larry Gadon’s impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, lawyer Manuel Luna on Wednesday, October 18, said they would be turning over documents from a dismissed impeachment complaint against the same official.

Speaking to reporters, Luna said they were requesting from the House of Representatives Secretary General the documents they submitted as part of an impeachment complaint filed Volunteers and Crime and Corruption (VACC)’s Dante Jimenez and Vanguard’s Eligio Mallari.

Luna is the legal counsel of VACC.

“I’m going to ask the Secretary General if I can retrieve the documents because we want to further strengthen the case versus the chief justice by turning over these documents to [Gadon]. These are the internal documents, the discussions and deliberations of the Supreme Court,” said Luna, who visited the House on Wednesday.

The lawyer said the documents would be “pivotal” to the case, which he expressed confidence would eventually reach the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court.

The committee on justice, which deliberates on impeachment complaints filed before the House, had earlier junked Jimenez and Mallari’s complaint against Sereno because it was insufficient in form. The same committee, however, approved Gadon’s impeachment complaint.

Thus far, it has been deemed sufficient in form, substance, and grounds. It will next discuss if there is probable cause to pursue Gabon’s complaint.

If the committee, through a majority vote, decides there is probable cause to pursue the case, it will be forwarded to the plenary for voting.

All it takes is a 1/3 vote of House members to impeach Sereno, after which the complaint will move forward to the Senate.

Sereno’s team has repeatedly asked the committee to dismiss the complaint, saying it has no basis and that the allegations against her are not impeachable offenses. – Rappler.com