The Supreme Court (SC) is more likely to decide today, October 15, 2019, on the long pending election protest of former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. against incumbent Vice President Leonor “Leni” Robredo. First, today’s en banc is the last session to be attended by outgoing SC Chief Justice Lucas Bersamin who is retiring on Friday. Second, the High Court justices’ break starts from October 21 and ends November 4, 2019.
There are two possible outcomes of the case. The first one is that the SC will uphold Marcos’s stand, thereby, continuing the vote counts in 24 protested areas. The other is the dismissal of the case. The decision boils down to the possible irregularities to be found by the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) on the manual vote recount in Camarines Sur, Iloilo, and Negros Oriental provinces.
On September 9, SC Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, the ponente on the case, submitted his report on the matter
The High Court has deferred many times the collective resolution of the protest.
Meanwhile, as they wait for any word on the election protest, supporters of Marcos and Robredo rally in front of the SC compound. Taft Avenue down to Maria Orosa Street are closed to traffic. Policemen have been deployed to ensure order in the course of the rally.
