MANILA, Philippines–Justices of the Supreme Court hinted on the prematurity of the petition questioning the legality of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
During Tuesday’s oral argument, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno asked if they have the legal authority “to make assumption that EDCA is unconstitutional even if it has yet to be implemented?”
“Should we not wait for the actual operations,” she added.
One of the petitioners’ counsel, Rachel Pastores, said EDCA is a treaty which should be ratified by the Senate, not only President Benigno Aquino and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.
Without the Senate concurrence, petitioners said EDCA cannot be implemented.
In their petition, they argued that EDCA violated Section 25 of Article 18 of the 1987 Constitution, which requires that any foreign military bases, troops or facilities “shall not be allowed in the Philippines except under a treaty duly concurred in by the Senate.”
Associate Justice Marvic Leonen said regardless of how patriotic the petitioner’s argument is, “you are arguing in the wrong forum.”
Leonen’s view was echoed by Associate Justices Jose Perez and Bienvenido Reyes.
“There can be no argument on the unconstitutionality now…this [case] is better presented before the Senate,” Perez said.
On the other hand, Reyes said “we have no capability to determine the facts of the petition…Without declaring the unconstitutionality of EDCA, we instead throw it back to the Senate for hearing and ratification.”