The Philippine Congress on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted to extend martial law in Mindanao for the entire 2018.
The Senate and House of Representatives granted President Rodrigo Duterte’s request for the extension of martial law.
This entails the suspension of the privilege of writ of habeas corpus for a period of one year from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2018.
A total of 240 members of Congress voted to approve the resolution of both houses while only 27 voted against it. There was no abstention.
A total of 14 senators voted in favor of the motion and four were against it, while 226 House members approved the motion and 23 rejected it.
Senator Francis Pangilinan questioned the length of the extension, saying that the President’s extraordinary powers to declare martial law “must not be exercised whimsically or arbitrarily”.
“Is the martial law extension consistent with the Constitution? Our acts must always be consistent with the law and Constitution. This is what distinguishes us from terrorists, criminals or rebels who we seek to defeat,” Pangilinan said.
