“How can a mere extension be inordinately longer than the original proclamation sought to be extended?”This was the question posed by opposition lawmakers led by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman as they asked the Supreme Court (SC) to declare “null and void” the year-long extension of martial law in Mindanao. According to the lawmakers, extending martial law in Mindanao for another year “defies” the 1987 Constitution’s “unmistakable” mandate to limit the duration of military rule. “Otherwise, the intention and mandate of the Constitution limiting the period of martial law and the suspension of the writ and the extension thereof would be breached,” they said. During a special joint session on Dec. 13, Congress voted 240-27 to approve Duterte’s request to extend martial law in Mindanao for another year. The Constitution states that any citizen may question the martial law declaration’s sufficiency of factual basis before the SC.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer December 27, 2017 11:03 UTC