Dragging purposely from performing its constitutional mandate to conduct the impeachment trial of the former education secretary and now impeached vice president, the senate president and exposed the senator-judges into their personal biases. Without reservation, senators who are loyal to the former and now detained president had shamelessly acted as defense lawyers of the impeached vice president notwithstanding that they are not lawyers. Such acts are clearly unlawful exercise of the legal profession. In other professions which require formal education and the passing of licensure examinations, any person performing acts without the required license is engaging in malpractice of profession.
In the deliberations on the senate floor, senator Ronald “Bato” Marapon dela Rosa and senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Teroso Go had openly shown their blind loyalty to the former education secretary and now impeached vice president Sara Z. Duterte. Obtaining the floor to raise a motion, he moved for the dismissal of the impeachment complaint even before the senate could hear the merits of the articles of impeachment. He explained that the articles of impeachment violated the one-year bar rule which prohibits the filing of more than one articles of impeachment within one year. That motion was duly seconded forthright by senator Christopher Lawrence Teroso Go.
The seemingly lengthy discussion by the movant was interrupted by a privilege motion from opposition senator Ana Theresia “Risa” Navarro Hontiveros-Baraquel who raised the issue of convening the impeachment court first before entertaining any matter, chiefly the motion to dismiss. Discussions ensued as the movant insisted on his motion which had been duly seconded. But the opposing view remain that the said motion could not be resolved unless the impeachment court is convened and the senator-judges take their oath.
The deliberation went without any clear direction as the presiding officer in senate president Francis Joseph “Chiz´ Guevara Escudero recognized Maria Josefa Remedios “Imee” Marcos-Manotoc who raised a privilege motion while senator Risa Hontiveros as the floor. It interrupted the discussion of senator Risa Hontiveros as the privileged motion takes precedence over any floor deliberation.
On the other hand, senator Robinhood Ferdinand “Robin” Cariño Padilla obtained the floor to express his personal sentiment that the articles of impeachment must be dismissed for it is causing division among our people. He lamented that the impeachment is causing embarrassment as there are many important issues that the country needs than the impeachment of the former education secretary and now impeached vice president. Such proposition raises the question as to what is embarrassing, the irregularities allegedly committed by the former education secretary and now impeached vice president or the action to hold accountability by way of impeachment, In the end, the actuations of senator-judges loyal to the Duterte family is clear signs of prejudice.
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