EMBATTLED Chief Justice Renato Corona yesterday asked the Supreme Court to immediately stop the impeachment trial in the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, and to declare as null and void the Articles of Impeachment for being technically flawed.

Also, Corona, through his lawyers, asked the SC to prohibit officers of the Bank of the Philippine Islands and Philippine Savings Bank from appearing before the impeachment court, and bring with them his and his family’s bank records.

In the petition, Corona’s counsels argued that the magistrate’s right to due process was repeatedly violated all throughout the proceedings – even allowed the erroneous application of liberality, which should not be the case – “all for the sake of accommodating the viewing public.

“The liberal attitude of the impeachment court has turned the proceedings into a fishing expedition, while CJ Corona was forced to swim against the tide,” the petition read.

The defense counsels insisted that probable cause was not established against Corona before the Articles of Impeachment were hastily transmitted to the Senate for trial.

“Per force of circumstance, this impeachment proceeding is riddled with constitutional defects too numerous to withstand even cursory legal scrutiny,” the defense said.

The defense maintained that the impeachment court should not have proceeded with the trial because the Articles of Impeachment were defective for want of probable cause.

Furthermore, the defense stressed the Impeachment Court committed grave abuse of discretion when it allowed the retention of paragraph 2.3 of Article 2, which pertained to Corona’s alleged ill-gotten wealth.

It stressed said paragraphs referring to the magistrate’s alleged ill-gotten wealth were all premised on “mere hearsay and suspicion for having written as reported” in Article 2.

“Needless to say, the statements therein do not constitute allegations in law, much less ultimate facts upon which a valid charge can be sustained,” the petition read.

Also, the defense stated that paragraphs 2.3 and 2.4 were based on conclusions which can be considered as ultimate facts.

“Time and again, this Honorable Court has held that charges based on mere suspicion and speculation cannot be given credence, and it would be absurd if mere suspicion and speculation would be treated as a valid basis to oust an incumbent Chief Justice of this Honorable Court,” the defense said.

At the same time, the defense rejected attempts to present officers of PSBank and BPI before the Impeachment Court and require them to bring bank records of Corona and his family.

The defense pointed out that there was no concrete evidence pointing to the supposed bank accounts as belonging to the Coronas, but merely “proofs taken from the prosecution’s fishing expedition.”