THE militant Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) party-list group yesterday accused the Duterte Youth party-list group of trying to blackmail Congress and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) into proclaiming it as among winners in the May 12 midterm elections despite unresolved legal and procedural issues it is facing.
Outgoing Rep. France Castro ridiculed Duterte Youth chairman Ronald Cardema’s threat to expose alleged corruption in the Comelec if Duterte Youth is not proclaimed, questioning his sincerity in fighting graft and corruption since the group has been silent on the impeachable offenses allegedly committed by Vice President Sara Duterte.
“Is fighting corruption really your advocacy? Why did you not speak about the controversies hounding VP Duterte? But you were almost foaming at the mouth because you weren’t immediately proclaimed when the lack of requirement was your own fault,” she said in Filipino.
Corruption is among allegations in the impeachment complaint filed against the vice president. The Articles of Impeachment, approved and transmitted by the House to the Senate in February 5, accuses the vice president of culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, graft, and other high crimes. Among the specific acts cited by the complaint is her alleged illegal use of P612.5 million in confidential funds during her concurrent tenure as vice president and education secretary
The Comelec on Monday proclaimed the winning party-list groups except for the Duterte Youth, which won three seats after getting the second highest number of votes, and the BH Bagong Henerasyon, whose proclamations were suspended because of pending cases against them.
On Tuesday, the Duterte Youth asked the Supreme Court to overturn the Comelec’s suspension decision. The petition for certiorari and prohibition filed by the group through Cardema also includes an urgent request for the issuance of a temporary restraining order and a writ of preliminary mandatory injunction.
DESPERATION
Incoming ACT party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio laughed off Duterte Youth’s moves, calling it “an act of desperation and intimidation.”
“Duterte Youth is trying to strong-arm Comelec and Congress by threatening to reveal ‘unscrupulous activities’ if they are not proclaimed,” he said.
“If they truly have evidence of corruption, let them present it. Otherwise, this is nothing more than a baseless scare tactic to pressure the institutions into giving them what they want,” Tinio said.
The returning militant lawmaker challenged the Duterte Youth to expose the alleged corruption in the government and the poll body if it really has the goods as Cardema claimed.
“We challenge Duterte Youth: If you really have the evidence like you claim, reveal it. Show it until next week. If not, it’s truly just a threat meant to secure your proclamation,” he said in Filipino.
“If Duterte Youth truly believes in the rule of law as they claim, they should stop their political grandstanding and comply with the processes in place. Anything less is hypocrisy,” Tinio added.
Castro said Duterte Youth’s scare tactics “further expose their lack of respect for due process and democratic principles.” She said Duterte Youth’s aversion to answering questions about its red-tagging activities “is a clear indication of an attempt to divert the issue.”
“This is not the kind of representation that our people deserve,” she said in Filipino.
POWER
Incoming Kabataan party-list Rep. Renee Co said the vice president wants her brother, Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte, to join the speakership race in the 20th Congress because she is scared of losing her post once she is found guilty by the Senate in her upcoming impeachment trial.
Co said the Duterte family fears losing their grip on power and seeing former president Rodrigo Duterte convicted by the International Criminal Court for his alleged crimes against humanity.
“That’s their fantasy, (for Paolo to be Speaker). The Dutertes are threatened that they’ll lose their hold on power if Sara and Digong are both convicted, that’s why Pulong is suddenly entering the picture,” she said in mixed Filipino and English.
She told the Duterte family to “stop posing as the opposition,” adding that they provide a good argument for the passage of the anti-political dynasty bill.
Senate deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros said the Senate is mandated to proceed with the impeachment trial even if President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has expressed openness to reconciling with the Duterte family.
She said the trial will proceed as scheduled since the Senate has already started with the “preliminary steps” of the process even during the campaign period, including the fitting of the robes the senator-judges will wear during the proceedings, and preparations of logistics requirements.
Senate President Francis Escudero earlier said the Senate will send a notice to the House for it to formally present the Articles of Impeachment when sessions resume of June 2. The Senate will then convene as an impeachment court, tackle the rules of impeachment, and send a summons to the vice president.
Trail proper will start after the President’s State of the Nation Address on July 28. – With Raymond Africa
