OPPOSITION lawmakers at the House of Representatives, led by Rep. Edcel Lagman of Albay, will no longer question the legality of the five-month extension of martial law in Mindanao. This developed after Lagman’s group and its allies suffered two setbacks before the High Court. President Rodrigo Duterte has asked Congress for a five-month extension of martial law in Mindanao to suppress an alleged rebellion from combined forces of the Maute group, Abu Sayyaf, Ansarul Khilafah Philippines and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF). “The present composition of the Supreme Court may not be disposed to favorably act on the petition after it has refused to exercise jurisdiction against the legislature in two mandamus cases,” Lagman added. Lagman and his colleagues in the opposition also questioned the legality of Proclamation 216 before the Supreme Court, which it affirmed in a recent ruling.

Source: Manila Times July 27, 2017 04:52 UTC