Protesters storm Senate gates: Follow the Constitution

MANILA, Philippines — Members of various civil society groups, religious and cause-oriented organizations and opposition parties stormed the Senate complex in Pasay City yesterday to demand the immediate convening of an impeachment court to try Vice President Sara Duterte.

The rallyists included members of Tindig Pilipinas, Nagkaisa labor coalition, Mamamayang Liberal party-list, Kalipunan, as well as student groups and grassroots community organizations. It ended with a multi-faith gathering outside the Senate.

Akbayan party president Rafaela David said the call for the immediate impeachment trial of Duterte has grown into a national movement backed by universities, legal experts and civic groups.

David accused Senate President Francis Escudero and other Senate leaders of stalling the process, apparently to satisfy their political interests.

“Only the Senate leadership stands in the way,” David said, adding that “it’s time to show courage and follow the Constitution.”

David also slammed Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino’s proposal to limit the trial to 19 days covering only two Articles of Impeachment. She called it “a trap disguised as compromise.”

Rally organizers said they intend to hold a prayer vigil tonight outside the Senate building and converge again for “day of action for truth and accountability” tomorrow afternoon, when the Senate is expected to kick off the trial with the presentation of articles.

“The ball is in the Senate,” representative-elect and former senator Leila de Lima of ML Party-list said in Filipino at yesterday’s gathering. “But we saw in the past few days how some senators are making various excuses.”

She said the Senate is “making us fools as if we don’t understand what’s written in the Constitution.”

In a phone interview with The STAR, a grandson of democracy stalwarts Cory and Ninoy Aquino said he sees no attempt “at this time” to replicate what transpired during Edsa Dos in 2001, amid the dilly-dallying over the impeachment trial of Duterte.

Kiko Aquino Dee said he would like to see Duterte, who faces seven impeachment articles, be subjected to the constitutional process. “We’re not really looking at the 2001 scenario at this time,” he said.

Dee said the Edsa spirit is at work during politically turbulent times like this.

Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, which mandates the Senate to “forthwith proceed” with a trial once the impeachment articles are transmitted, represents the people’s collective aspirations when they decided in 1986 to end the dictatorship and restore democracy, Dee said.

“We want the impeachment trial to happen and we want it concluded,” Dee said. “We have no other calls at this point.”

Calls mount

More groups, meanwhile, have joined calls for the Senate to start the impeachment trial of Duterte.

“The prolonged delay in fulfilling this duty undermines the inviolable principles of accountability, transparency and democratic governance that we must uphold and instill in our students and in all Filipino citizens,” the UP Diliman Department of Political Science said in a manifesto.

It added that while the impeachment process is inherently political, it need not be politicized.

“Politics in the best, most democratic sense – as the practice of accountability and pursuit of the public good – requires that public officials be held to the highest standards of integrity. Our Constitution, especially Article XI on the Accountability of Public Officers, empowers and obliges the Senate to perform this role without delay,” it said.

“As the framers of the 1987 Constitution have affirmed, the mandate is clear: once the House has adopted the Articles of Impeachment, the trial in the Senate must forthwith proceed immediately and without unreasonable delay,” the faculty added.

It added that the reasoning that the impeachment lapses with the end of the 19th Congress runs contrary to the intent of the Constitution.

“It is also indefensible given the avoidable delays from both chambers of Congress in the past months. Being constituted as an impeachment court is a constituent function of the Senate, distinct from its legislative work, and is governed by a higher duty to ensure that public office remains a public trust. Further delaying this process will render public trust and accountability meaningless,” it pointed out.

It said that the nation’s leaders, including sitting senators, were once trained in our classrooms.

“We remind them now of the enduring lesson we hold dear: excellence is meaningless without honor,” it maintained.

The University of Santo Tomas said the Senate should “respect the Constitution, fulfill the duty, forthwith proceed” with the impeachment trial.

The Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines said the Senate should uphold the principles of due process, checks and balance, transparency and public accountability.

“To our senators, this is a call for personal transcendence: transcend your personal and political interests, and fight for truth and justice,” CEAP said.

“This was your vow when we elected you. This was your commitment to the Filipino people. This was the promise you made to your God, who blessed you with the power to lead and serve. We pray that you honor your vow, commitment and blessing, with spiritual discernment, courage and action,” it said.

For the Makati Business Club (MBC), the Duterte impeachment trial is “a governance issue and a test of public accountability and the rule of law.”

“The impeachment trial is meant to present evidence to determine if the charges against the Vice President have basis or not,” MBC said, as it called on the Senate to proceed with the trial without further delay.

“The senators, individually, and the Senate as an institution, will betray public trust and not provide the Vice President with the forum to refute charges if they do not proceed with the impeachment trial,” it said.

78% want trial - OCTA

As protests over the Senate’s foot-dragging on the issue mount, the OCTA Research group released yesterday survey results showing eight in every 10 Filipinos voicing belief that Duterte should stand trial before the Senate.

The survey, conducted from April 20 to 24, found that 78 percent of the respondents want Duterte to face trial to clear her name by responding to the charges against her.

Only 13 percent said they do not want Duterte to face trial, while nine percent declining to answer the survey question.

Support for the conduct of the trial is high even in her bailiwick Mindanao, where 77 percent said the Vice President should face the impeachment court.

It was highest among those in the Visayas at 87 percent, followed by those in Metro Manila at 83 percent, Mindanao at 77 percent and rest of Luzon at 73 percent.

Meanwhile, those who do not want Duterte to face trial are highest among respondents in Mindanao at 20 percent, followed by those in the Visayas, balance Luzon at 11 percent and Metro Manila at 10 percent.

Support for the conduct of the impeachment trial was also high across economic areas, age groups and educational attainment.

The OCTA survey had 1,200 respondents and a margin of error of plus/minus three percent.

Its results matched similar polls conducted on the issue by other firms, including WR-Numero and Social Weather Stations. — Janvic Mateo, Bella Cariaso, Louella Desiderio