THE Supreme Court (SC) will conduct oral arguments on January 16 and 17 on the two petitions seeking to annul the yearlong extension of martial law in Mindanao.
The SC en banc has also directed the consolidation of the two petitions filed respectively by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman and the lawmakers belonging to the so-called Magnificent 7 and the National Union of People's Lawyers (NUPL) together with lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc.
The two groups, in their respective petitions, want the SC to issue a temporary restraining order to stop the imposition of martial law, citing the absence of actual rebellion in Mindanao.
They also stated in their petition that the 1987 Constitution does not allow another extension to the original declaration of martial law.
Last June 2017, the SC also tackled in oral arguments the petitions filed against the May 23 martial law proclamation of President Rodrigo Duterte.
The petitions were dismissed and martial law, which had been extended until the end of 2017, was declared constitutional.
On December 13, 2017, the Senate and the House of Representatives in a joint session further extended martial law in Mindanao until the end of 2018 despite the end of the armed conflict in Marawi City.
The Marawi conflict erupted after the Islamic State-inspired Maute group went on a rampage in Marawi City following a government operation targeting terrorist leader Isnilon Hapilon.
Hapilon and Omar Maute, one of the Maute brothers, were found dead on October 16, 2017, paving for the President's declaration of Marawi's liberation from terrorists on October 17.
Defense authorities declared an end to the armed conflict on October 23, exactly five months after fighting erupted.
Congress, however, agreed to extend martial law to allow the government to go after all armed groups that threaten the security of the region, including the New People's Army. (SunStar Philippines)