Senate President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III welcomed on Tuesday the filing of a petition at the Supreme Court (SC) compelling Congress to deliberate in joint session the martial law declaration in Mindanao. “If there are differing interpretations of a constitutional provision, then the Supreme Court should step in as the referee,” Pimentel said in a text message to reporters. ADVERTISEMENTPimentel, an administration ally, was also among the 12 senators, who junked a resolution calling for a joint session of Congress to deliberate on the martial law declaration. READ: SC petitioners seek High Court intervention on martial law declarationPimentel’s own father, former Senate President Aqulino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. also believes that Congress has a constitutional mandate to tackle in joint session the martial law declaration. IDL/rgaREAD: Congress has power to tackle martial law in joint session, says Nene Pimentel

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer June 06, 2017 06:43 UTC