The Supreme Court (SC) may still issue a preliminary injunction to halt the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte, even if it does not immediately grant a temporary restraining order (TRO), a member of the defense panel in the impeachment of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona said.

Lawyer Tranquil Salvador III said the High Court’s inaction on a TRO request should not be interpreted as a final denial of the plea for injunctive relief.

“Ordinarily, we would say the Court didn’t act on the TRO. But does it mean the Court will not consider it at all? We cannot say that with finality,” Salvador said.

He explained that the SC’s directive for respondents, including the House of Representatives Committee on Justice, to submit their comments within 10 days, is part of standard procedure.

He said this requirement does not mean the petition has been given due course, nor does it preclude future action on the request for an injunction.

“Without necessarily giving due course to the petition, they require a comment, and then the Supreme Court will study this,” he said.

The petitions, filed by Duterte and a separate group of lawyers, challenged the constitutionality of the impeachment proceedings, particularly the actions of the House justice panel.

They argued that the committee exceeded its authority by engaging in broad evidence-gathering and violating due process safeguards.

The SC has consolidated the petitions and ordered the respondents, including the House panel, to file their comments within a non-extendible 10-day period.

Salvador noted that while a TRO may no longer be immediately applicable since proceedings have already started, the Court could still opt to issue a preliminary injunction at a later stage.

Asked if such a remedy remains legally possible, he said: “Yes. I’m not saying it will, but because naturally it’s one of their prayers. It means the Court can consider or resolve the same.”

He stressed, however, that any potential action by the High Court remains uncertain.

Anything is possible

“It may happen, or it may not happen,” he said.

The House of Representatives Committee on Justice, one of the respondents in the case, has yet to complete its comment on the petitions.

The SC earlier clarified that its directive to respondents to submit comments within 10 days did not mean the petitions had been given due course.

Meanwhile, Senator Imee Marcos urged her brother, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., to speak out against the “sickening lies” of Ramil Madriaga, who alleged that ex-President Rodrigo Duterte had arranged a supposed “term-sharing” deal between him and Vice President Sara Duterte ahead of the 2022 polls.