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The marathon voting on a House committee report dismissing impeachment files against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was finalized with the overwhelming victory of the pro-administration lawmakers on Tuesday.
After more than 23-hour debate, the House of Representatives decided around 3:35 PM to accept the report of the justice committee to stop the impeachment against the president with a vote of 158 to 51 and six abstentions.
However, the opposition lawmakers earlier conceded the defeat around 12:42 PM. when only 41 voted against the report and 121 voted to support it.
House Minority Leader Francis Escudero told reporters that the opposition had accepted the decision but added that the president failed to answer the important questions in the minority's amended complaint.
However, the opposition politicians said that they would keep up its campaign to unseat her through the courts and in the streets.
"We may have lost, we may have not gotten the 79 signatures, this does not mean that Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has won," House Minority Leader Francis Escudero said in a speech at the House.
Ruled by the constitution, an impeachment file can be automatically sent to the Senate after gaining 79 signatures in the House of Representatives and, otherwise, be dealt with by the House justice committee.
According to the minority leader, at least 74 congressmen have signed or agreed to sign the minority's amended impeachment complaint by Saturday.
"However, we cannot deny that our foe is the highest and most powerful official in the country who would not think twice about using available government resources to ensure that the 79 votes will not be reached," he added.
The opposition lawmakers, who anticipated the failed impeachment in the House, have vowed to transfer their fighting arena to the Supreme Court.
On the other hand, the overnight voting of the House would be followed on Tuesday by a mass opposition protest led by Former president Corazon Aquino, an icon of the "people power" revolt that ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1986.
"Maybe this is one way of telling them how much it means, not only to me but to all of us who love our democracy and who are searching for the truth," Aquino said.
The House justice committee finalize the report dismissed the original impeachment complaint filed by lawyer Oliver Lozano for lack of substance. it also excluded the impeachment complaint filed by lawyer Jose Rizalino Lopez and the amended version by the opposition, citing the one-year rule banning the impeaching a sitting President.
(Xinhua News Agency September 7, 2005)
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