MANILA, July 26 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine Supreme Court ruled Tuesday with finality that the defense pact between the United States and the Philippines is constitutional.
Voting 9-4, the high court trashed the motions for reconsideration filed by former Senators Rene Saguisag and Wigberto Tanada and the militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan against the court's earlier decision that the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement(EDCA) is constitutional and does not require Senate concurrence.
The court said in their latest ruling that "the petitioners do not not present new arguments to buttress their claims of error on the part of this Court," adding the petitioners "hashed their prior arguments."
It added "the points being made (by the petitioners) are the same."
In dismissing the motion for reconsideration, the high court said EDCA did not go beyond the framework of the constitution. The entry of the U.S. troops in the Philippines has long been allowed under a valid and subsisting treaties -- the Visiting Forces Agreement and the Mutual Defense Treaty.
