Here is the rewritten content without other comments:
MANILA, Philippines — A group of 29 Mindanao lawyers, including counsel Israelito Torreon and former transportation regulatory board chief Martin Delgra, filed a petition with the Supreme Court on February 18 to stop Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial.
Torreon, who also represents detained preacher Apollo Quiboloy, argued that the impeachment complaint is constitutionally deficient and violates due process. He described the impeachment as “defective” as it allegedly did not consider due process for Duterte and did not follow the constitutionally prescribed verification process.
The lawyers also argued that there was no proper verification of the impeachment complaints in the House of Representatives. They stated that the 215 members of the House of Representatives had only three hours to review the complaint and verify all its attachments.
Torreon said, “Can you understand anything in one minute and two seconds? Ang kapal-kapal ng impeachment complaint? (the impeachment complaint is too thick) Why? Because an impeachment complaint is not a road process, it is a process which is sacrosanct.”
Aside from their main petition, the lawyers also asked the high court for a temporary restraining order, which, if granted, will temporarily halt the impeachment process. Previous petition at court prompted lawyer Catalino Generillo Jr. to file a petition before the Supreme Court, requesting that the high court compel the Senate to promptly convene as an impeachment court.
On February 5, the House of Representatives proceeded to impeach Duterte with 215 of its members backing the fourth impeachment complaint against her. However, Senate President Chiz Escudero said that an impeachment tribunal would not take place during a congressional break.
