‘’Even our politics, it seems, is a multi-level marketing-type of politics with the people eventually left holding on to the proverbial empty bag.’
THEY’LL just have to file a new impeachment complaint next year.”
This was my response to a private chat between me, a young lawyer, and four others, including two rich businessmen. We have set up a private chat group so we could exchange ideas, plans, thoughts and comments about business in general, the country in general, politicians in general, and specific issues and characters when we feel like it.
I was responding to a somewhat alarmed comment by the young lawyer that the dismissal by the Supreme Court of the impeachment articles had very serious consequences for 2028. I understood why the young lawyer was agitated, but I had a different take.
First, despite its ruling from on high, the Supreme Court could not really dismiss the impeachment. Under our Constitution, it does not have such powers. Under Article XI, Sec. 3, paragraph 6, it is the Senate that has the sole power to try and decide such a case.
Since the impeachment complaint had already been filed with the Senate and since the Senate has already constituted itself into an impeachment court, my view is that no other body has jurisdiction over the matter, and the issue of violating the one year bar (no person can be subject to an impeachment complaint more than one within 12 months, paragraph 5 of the same Article and Section) is a matter of defense to be raised during trial.
Yes, the Court could still have ruled – as it did – that from its viewpoint the process violated the Constitutional mandate of paragraph 5, but then it should have added that this is already outside of its jurisdiction. This would have been respectful of the sole jurisdiction granted by the same Constitution to the Senate.
So, from where I sit, I think the Supreme Court may have ruled, but its ruling is, well, a stretch. Or out of order.
Then again, what do I know? I quit law school one grade of incomplete away from earning a UP Law diploma.
Second, the fact that the Court focused on the period meant that another way to attack this is to simply refile an impeachment complaint in February of 2026. That would avoid a head-on clash between the Senate and the Court and avoid a specter of having some sort of “limited” People Power (again) deciding a political matter of grave importance – limited because it will be mainly us here in Metro Manila speaking for the entire nation.
And it was to this comment that my lawyer friend remarked: Do you know how expensive it is to gather 1/3 of the votes in the House and 2/3 of the Senate?
And that’s when reality struck me.
Even our politics, it seems, is a multi-level marketing-type of politics with the people eventually left holding on to the proverbial empty bag.
