Campaign aimed to speed up Sara impeachment
THE militant Makabayan bloc yesterday launched a campaign to gather signatures of one-third of all members of the House of Representatives, as required by the Constitution to automatically send the impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte to the Senate for trial.
Meanwhile, House Secretary General Reginald Velasco said his office has yet to transmit the two complaints to the Office of the Speaker because he is expecting more to be filed against the Vice President.
“There are congressmen who spoke to me saying they are thinking about filing or endorsing a complaint, so we are still on hold. We’re waiting,” he told reporters in Filipino.
Velasco said his office will transmit the complaints all at once, probably next week, once the additional complaints are filed.
Party-list Reps. France Castro (ACT), Arlene Brosas (Gabriela) and Raoul Manuel (Kabataan), in a joint statement, said, “We, the Makabayan bloc in Congress, have initiated efforts to gather the required one-third of signatures from House members to sign the Resolution of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte based on the citizens’ complaint signed by 72 individuals from various sectors led by BAYAN and Makabayan.”
“We urge our colleagues in Congress to act with integrity and political courage by supporting this impeachment resolution,” they also said.
“During the budget deliberations, the misuse of confidential funds in the Office of the Vice President (OVP) was exposed. It is now up to the House of Representatives to fulfill its constitutional duty to hold erring public officials accountable,” they added.
As there are 307 House members, they will need the signatures of at least 103 congressmen to shorten the impeachment process.
Without meeting this requirement to expedite the process, the complaints will have to be referred to the House Committee on Justice which will vote to determine if the complaints are sufficient in form and substance.
Once approved by the plenary, the Vice President is considered impeached and only then can the complaint be brought to the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, for trial.
“This is not just about numbers. It is about the integrity of public service and the trust of the people. Sara Duterte must be held accountable for betraying the public’s trust,” said Manuel.
The three Makabayan bloc lawmakers earlier endorsed the impeachment complaint filed Wednesday by 72 individuals led by the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), which cited only one ground — betrayal of public trust.
The complaint was anchored on Duterte’s alleged “abuse and misuse” of a total of P612.5 million in confidential funds in both the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and the Department of Education (DepEd) when the Vice President served as concurrent education secretary.
“This isn’t a simple violation. Using public funds this way is tantamount to a systematic robbery of the country’s coffers. This corruption cannot be allowed to pass,” Castro said in Filipino.
It also cited her alleged fabrication of accomplishment reports and receipts submitted to the Commission on Audit (COA) as liquidation documents, and obstruction of congressional oversight by refusing to participate in budget hearings and investigations.
“Instead of facing Congress and explaining, VP Duterte chose to avoid investigations and hearings. This is a clear violation of the principle of public accountability,” Brosas said in Filipino.
The Bayan complaint was filed last Wednesday, coming just two days after the first one which was filed by civil society and religious organizations led by Akbayan party-list and endorsed by Rep. Percival Cendaña.
That group accused the Vice President of culpable violation of the Constitution, graft and corruption, bribery, betrayal of public trust, and other high crimes for various acts.
It was also anchored on the Vice President’s alleged misuse of confidential funds and other violations such as her threat to have President Marcos Jr. assassinated, along with his wife Liza and cousin Speaker Martin Romualdez, in case she gets killed.
‘DEMAND JUSTICE’
The Constitution bars the initiation of more than one impeachment complaint against an official within the same year, but the House may consolidate all complaints before referring it to the justice panel, the point when a complaint is deemed “initiated.”
“To the Filipino people, we call on you to stay vigilant and pressure your district representatives to sign the impeachment resolution. Let us demand justice for the misuse of public funds and ensure this case reaches the Senate for a fair trial,” the Makabayan bloc said. “To our fellow Filipinos: Let us not allow this issue to be swept under the rug. Pressure your representatives in Congress to support the impeachment resolution.”
They called on the Senate to prepare for an “impartial and transparent trial,” saying the Filipino people “deserve to see justice prevail.”
“This impeachment process is a critical test of our commitment to justice and accountability for the highest public officials Let this serve as a strong message that no one, not even the Vice President, is above the law,” Castro said.
‘NO DISCUSSIONS’
Administration lawmakers denied reports the impeachment was discussed during their dinner with President Marcos Jr. at Malacañang Palace on Wednesday night.
“We just went there with the other congressmen and party leaders. We just gave the President our resolution expressing our full support for him,” Manila Rep. Joel Chua told GMA’s Unang Balita in Filipino.
Resolution No. 277, previously adopted as House Resolution No. 2092, was titled “Expressing the unwavering and unqualified support and solidarity of the House of Representatives to the leadership of His Excellency, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., and the Honorable Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez in the face of serious and dangerous remarks and defiant acts that threaten the very foundation of democratic governance, rule of law, and public trust and integrity of government institutions.”
Chua said the President, after his speech, thanked the House “and encouraged us to just continue doing our job. That’s it. We had picture-taking sessions and then dinner,” he said.
Chua is the chair of the House Committee on Good Government which has been looking into Duterte’s alleged misuses of confidential funds in both the OVP and the DepEd when she was still concurrent education secretary.
The President has asked lawmakers to refrain from impeaching the Vice President even after their political ties have soured and she threatened to have him, the First Lady and the Speaker killed.
La Union Rep. Paolo Ortega V said the event was “a long-planned gathering aimed at fostering camaraderie and demonstrating support for the President’s administration.”
“There’s no truth to rumors or speculations or the thoughts of some people. That was a simple dinner and the highlight was the House’s resolution of support,” he told a press conference.
MANIFESTO
Lawmakers on Wednesday night also presented the President a manifesto reaffirming support for the President in the face of his shattered political alliance with the Vice President, calling him the “symbol of the nation’s sovereignty.”
House members vowed to thwart any attempt to destabilize the government and undermine the Chief Executive’s leadership after former president Rodrigo Duterte tried to stir the military to act against the President and rehashing his allegation that he is a “drug addict.”
“Guided by the Philippine Constitution as the supreme law of the land, we, the Members of the House of Representatives of the Republic of the Philippines, reaffirm our unwavering commitment to defend the democratic institutions and sovereignty of our nation,” the manifesto said.
Romualdez said military officials have also reaffirmed their commitment to upholding the 1987 Constitution and supporting the Marcos administration, during his meeting at them at the House last Tuesday.
Religious organization Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) said it is set to mobilize its flock to express support for Marcos statement against impeachment, said a statement aired on Net 25.
SENATE SKED
Senate President Francis Escudero yesterday said the upper chamber can conduct the impeachment trial even if Congress is on a break.
He said an impeachment proceeding is “unique” that it allows the Senate to act as an impeachment court even if their counterparts in the House of Representatives will not go into session due to adjournment.
“This impeachment trial is not a regular session where our counterparts in the House of Representatives should also be in session,” he said in Filipino at the Kapihan sa Senado media forum.
He, however, clarified his statement is not meant to preempt the outcome of the impeachment complaints at the House. He said he was only answering questions from the media on possible scenarios once the impeachment complaints reach the Senate.
He said the schedule of the hearings will be discussed if and when the complaint reaches the Senate.
He said he has not called for any meeting with regard to the impeachment trial and will only do so if and when the complaint reaches the Senate so that they cannot be accused of being “presumptuous.” – With Raymond Africa and Gerard Naval
