Manila: Vice President Sara Duterte's lawyers on Tuesday filed their comment on the House of Representatives' motion seeking the reversal of the Supreme Court (SC) ruling that junked the impeachment case against her. The 27-page comment of the defense team, led by lawyer Philip Sigfrid Fortun, said the high court's July 25 decision "requires no factual correction" as "it rests on an unshaken foundation of truth."

According to Philippines News Agency, the House, through the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), is seeking the reversal of the unanimous SC ruling that declared as unconstitutional the Articles of Impeachment against Duterte. The SC ruling highlighted that the Articles of Impeachment are barred by the one-year rule under Article XI Section 3 paragraph 5 of the Constitution. Furthermore, the complaint was said to have violated Duterte's right to due process.

Lawmakers, however, have contested the SC's decision, arguing that the due process requirements laid down are not sanctioned by the Constitution and "unduly interfere" with Congress' authority to conduct impeachment proceedings. In response, Duterte's lawyers stressed that the SC findings were based on "substantive legal ground" and not on "immaterial details."

Moreover, the defense team challenged the validity of the House's motion for reconsideration, arguing that Congress is not a continuing body and that the appeal was filed by the OSG without the necessary approval by the members of the 20th Congress. They asserted that "absent this approval by the plenary, the motion is unauthorized and legally infirm. It is a nullity that usurps the institutional authority of the 20th Congress itself."