Latest news with #ACTTeachersPartylist
GMA Network
4 days ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
Pimentel: No need for senator-judges to inhibit from Sara Duterte's impeachment trial
In a press conference, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III emphasized that two-thirds or 16 senator-judges need to say that Vice President Sara Duterte is guilty or not guilty before she gets convicted or not. Photo by Giselle Ombay Senate Minority Leader Aquilino 'Koko' Pimentel III on Tuesday opposed calls for certain senator-judges to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial, saying that it may even benefit Vice President Sara Duterte if they do so. In a press conference, the outgoing senator emphasized that two-thirds or 16 senator-judges need to say that Duterte is guilty or not guilty before she gets convicted or not. ''Yung mga senador na magiging judges, ipaabot hanggang dulo sa decision nila so that they will now state their decision — guilty or not guilty — tapos taumbayan na ang huhusga sa desisyon ng bawat senador,' Pimentel said. (Let the senator-judges stay until the end so that they can state their decision — guilty or not guilty — then let the people judge them according to their decision.) ''Pag nag-inhibit, nakakalusot pa siya eh, hindi na niya kailangan sabihin kung ano ang decision niya —guilty ba or not guilty. Na-excuse pa siya tapos 'yung kanyang absence ay pabor pa sa not guilty,' he added. (If someone inhibits, he or she will get away with stating his or her decision whether guilty or not guilty. He or she will be excused and his or her absence will favor those who would vote not guilty.) Senate President Francis 'Chiz' Escudero on Monday explained that it is up to any senator-judge to inhibit from the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte as the decision is 'voluntary.' Atty. Christian Monsod, one of the authors of the 1987 Constitution, said he believes Senators Ronald 'Bato' dela Rosa and Francis Tolentino should inhibit themselves from sitting as senator-judges after they sought to dismiss the impeachment complaint against Duterte. Meanwhile, the ACT Teachers Partylist also called on Senators Imee Marcos and Robin Padilla to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial, after they went with Duterte to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and openly expressed their support for her. For her part, Duterte said that senator-judges should not be urged to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial solely based on their political bias. If that were the case, the Vice President said that those who are not in favor of her, including Senator Risa Hontiveros, should also be barred from the impeachment trial. Pimentel explained that if a senator-judge inhibits, this may even favor Duterte and result in her non-conviction. 'Kailangan 16 talaga ang magsabi ng guilty… Wala nang kailangan sabihin ang [8], basta 16 ang magsabi ng guilty. 'Pag hindi tayo maka 16 na nagsabi ng guilty, kasi tumahimik lang ang [8], not guilty. Not convicted,' he said. (There should be 16 senator-judges that have say she's guilty. The other 8 don't have to say anything, as long as 16 have already said she's guilty. If can't reach 16, because others just stayed quiet, then she is not guilty, not convicted.) 'Return to sender' Pimentel also said the move of the Senate impeachment court to return to the House of Representatives the articles of impeachment may pose legal questions, resulting in further delays in the trial. 'Imbis na simplehan mo ang proseso na madaling maintindihan ng lahat, hindi lang ng taumbayan but pati 'yung parties to the case para madaling maka-comply, diretso lang sana, medyo lumiko ka…marami ngayong maka-imagine ng legal issues,' he said. (Instead of simplifying the process so that it is easy for everyone to understand, not only for the public but also the parties to the case so that they can easily comply, you made it more confusing, so many people can now think of legal issues.) 'So all the more hindi tuloy napabilis o dumiretso yung daan. Sa pag-detour mo, meron ngayon nagtatanong saan ba papunta? 'Yung pag-detour mo, tamang ruta pa ba yan? Pwedeng manganak ng mga legal cases. Eh 'pag may mga legal cases na, napo-focus ka na doon sa legal cases, hindi na sa main issue,' he added. (So all the more it became complicated. When you detour, someone would ask where are you going? Is that still the right route? It can give rise to legal cases. If there are legal cases, you would only focus on that and not on the main issue anymore.) The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, last Tuesday voted 18-5 to bring Duterte's case back to the lower chamber without dismissing or terminating it. The House of Representatives impeached Duterte on February 5, with over 200 lawmakers endorsing the complaint. The articles of impeachment were transmitted to the Senate the same day, but the upper chamber adjourned without tackling the impeachment case. Duterte was accused of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes. — BAP, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
5 days ago
- Politics
- GMA Network
Escudero: Recusal of senators from impeachment trial ‘voluntary'
Senate President Francis 'Chiz' Escudero on Monday explained that it is up to any senator-judge to inhibit from the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte. Escudero made the remark amid calls for certain senators, particularly those allied with Duterte, to recuse themselves from sitting as senator-judges. 'Generally, ang pag-recuse [o] pag-inhibit is voluntary on the part of the impeachment court judge. Nakita na nating nangyari 'yan sa ibang impeachment na kaso,' the senate president said in a press conference. (Generally, the recusal or inhibition is voluntary on the part of the impeachment court judge. We had seen that happen in other impeachment cases.) 'Hindi 'yan pwedeng ipilit sa sinuman, pabor man kay VP Sara o kontra man kay VP Sara, pabor man sa impeachment o kontra man sa impeachment,' he added. (That cannot be forced on anyone, whether he or she is in favor of VP Sara or not, whether he or she is in favor of impeachment or against it.) Atty. Christian Monsod, one of the authors of the 1987 Constitution, said he believes Senators Ronald 'Bato' dela Rosa and Francis Tolentino should inhibit themselves from sitting as senator-judges after they sought to dismiss the impeachment complaint against Duterte. Meanwhile, the ACT Teachers Partylist also called on Senators Imee Marcos and Robin Padilla to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial, after they went with Duterte to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and openly expressed their support for her. Duterte said that senator-judges should not be urged to recuse themselves from the impeachment trial solely based on their political bias. If that were the case, then Vice President said that those who are not in favor of her, including Senator Risa Hontiveros, should also be barred from the impeachment trial. Escudero also stressed that the impeachment court has no limits when it comes to the trial, citing the Constitution. 'Walang limitasyon ang impeachment court kaugnay ng pwede o hindi naming pwedeng pagpasyahan. Nakalagay nga sa Saligang Batas diba, sole power to try and decide,' he said. (The impeachment court has no limits regarding what it can or cannot do. It's in the Constitution that we have sole power to try and decide.) 'Sa aming rules o sa rules man rules of court walang nakasaad doon na bawal kang gumawa ng ganito o ganyan o ganoong mosyon. Lahat ng mosyon pwedeng gawin at pagbobotohan ng impeachment court. Walang limitasyon 'yun,' he continued. (There's nothing in the rules of court that states that we are not allowed to do this or that. All motions can be made and voted on by the impeachment court. There is no limit to that.) The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, last Tuesday voted 18-5 to bring Duterte's case back to the lower chamber without dismissing or terminating it. The House of Representatives impeached Duterte on February 5, with over 200 lawmakers endorsing the complaint. The articles of impeachment were transmitted to the Senate the same day, but the upper chamber adjourned without tackling the impeachment case. Duterte was accused of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the constitution, graft and corruption, and other high crimes.—LDF, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
13-06-2025
- Politics
- GMA Network
ACT Teachers party-list solons urge Imee, Robin to recuse from impeachment trial
"Well, para sa akin, matagal naman na nating alam na talagang... supporter pa rin ng mga Duterte. Kaya dapat ay mag-inhibit sila as senator-judge doon sa magaganap na trial para doon sa impeachment,' ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro said in an interview. The ACT Teachers Partylist today called on Senators Imee Marcos and Robin Padilla to recuse from the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte. This developed after Imee Marcos and Padilla went with Sara Duterte to Kuala Lumpur and attended an event with overseas Filipino workers, during which the two senators openly expressed their support for the impeached official. "Well, para sa akin, matagal naman na nating alam na talagang... supporter pa rin ng mga Duterte. Kaya dapat ay mag-inhibit sila as senator-judge doon sa magaganap na trial para doon sa impeachment,' ACT Teachers Rep. France Castro said in an interview. "Mukhang wala na tayong magagawa sa dalawang yan kung ganyan ang mga statement. Hindi pa nagsisimula ang paglalabas ng mga testimony, mga witnesses, mga documents, ay meron na silang predjudgment doon sa impeachment trial, impeachment case,' she added. GMA News Online is trying to get a comment from Imee Marcos and Padilla and will publish their comments as soon as they are available. Castro's party mate, representative-elect Antonio Tinio, echoed the call but said he didn't expect Sara Duterte's allies to recuse from the impeachment trial. 'Dapat talaga mag-inhibit sila. Pero pangungunahan na rin natin na alam natin na hindi naman nila gagawin yon kasi inhibition ay voluntary. At wala tayong ilusyon na mag-iinhibit ang dalawang yan o yung mga senators na openly supportive kay Vice President Sara Duterte,' Tinio said. House Assistant Majority Leader Jude Acidre of Tingog Partylist said the issue against the two senators, who will be sitting as judges in the impeachment trial, is not only moral and ethical but also goes against the oath they took as public servants. 'It's a moral question. It's an ethical question, yes. But most importantly, it appears to be a betrayal of the oath they took. They did not take an oath; no one, including myself, took an oath to protect one single political leader. We all took an oath to protect the institution, the Constitution,' Acidre said in an interview. ''Yon naman talaga ang trabaho namin. Wala naman kaming trabahong protektahan kahit sinong pulitikko, mataas man o mababa sa amin. Ang trabaho namin ay sundin ang Konstitusyon, na nilabag ng Senado sa usapin ng impeachment,' he added. House Deputy Majority Leader Francisco Paolo Ortega of La Union said it was unethical for a senator-judge to be vocal about their support for the impeached vice president. 'They're still making the obvious very obvious. As a senator judge, dapat impartial ka,' Ortega said. Acidre and Ortega did not join the calls for the Duterte allies to recuse from the impeachment trial. 'The Senate would be the best judge on how to address this issue. In the end, consistent tayo sa ating pananaw that the Senate cannot look into the affairs of the House on how we conduct our proceedings, and only presume regularity of our actions. I'm giving them the same presumption of regularity,' Acidre said. 'It depends sa Senate… Nasa sa kanila yan kasi I cannot speak for them. I can only speak for the House. Siyempre yung context ng pagiging judge, siyempre may dapat… requirement talaga na impartial ka,' Ortega said. –NB, GMA Integrated News
