https://youtu.be/8bxT3v5shQY
(Eagle News) – The leadership of the House of Representatives said that they can only begin to take up the matter of the impeachment complaint filed against Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno after Congress returns from the scheduled break on May 14.
Both House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and House Majority Floor Leader Rodolfo Farinas said that Congress would soon be going on a break and that the Supreme Court might be coming out with a decision on the quo warranto petition against Sereno soon. Congress’ last session date would be on March 23.
House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said that it would be best for Congress to wait for the Supreme Court’s action on the quo warranto petition filed by the Office of the Solicitor General against the Chief Justice.
Alvarez explained that if the high court would act on the OSG’s petition, then it would be futile for them to proceed with the impeachment trial.
“Kasi ang mangyayari dyan, pag halimbawa nag-grant yung Supreme Court ng quo warranto, ibig sabihin in-invalidate ang appointment, so ano pa ang iimpeach naming? Wala na,” Alvarez told reporters.
He also explained that Congress would soon go on a break in seven days, and it would only be after the House Committee on Justice votes on the impeachment complaint against Sereno will this be sent to the plenary for deliberation and voting.
The House committee on justice, headed by Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, is set to vote on the impeachment complaint against Sereno, as filed by Att. Larry Gadon, on Thursday, March 8.
Even House majority floor leader, Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas said that plenary could take up the matter of Sereno’s impeachment when they return from the vacation on May 14. The last session will be on March 21 and their break will be until May 13.
“Granting na isasama ko yan sa order of business, pagbalik na namin ng May 14. Pag maisama sa order of business yan, plenary has 60 session days also. So plenary has until October 31,” Fariñas explained.
“So the power to impeach, kasama na rin dyan when to impeach,” he said.
Fariñas is also of the view that the Supreme Court will decide soon on whether it would take up the quo warranto petition against Sereno.
“Ang nakikita namin — ako lang ha — this is my view as chairman of the Committee on Rules: Pag nakikita ko na may serious challenge on the legitimacy of the officer in question, hintayin ko muna yan. This is of utmost importance to the Supreme Court. This will be resolved in a month’s time. Hindi naman magtatagal yan,” he said.
On Tuesday, March 6, the Supreme Court already directed Sereno to submit her comment to the quo warranto petition within 10 days from receipt of its notice.
“In the matter of GR no. 237428, Republic of the Philippines represented by the Solicitor General versus the Chief Justice, the court without giving due course to the petition required the respondent to submit her comment on the petition for quo warranto within a period of 10 days from receipt of notice,” the tribunal’s directive read.
Only Associate Justice Justice Marvic Leonen dissented “on the ground that in his opinion, the petition should be dismissed outright.”
(with a video report from Eden Suarez-Santos, Eagle News Service)
