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Saturday, September 20, 2003
It's up to House: Davide
By Benjamin B. Pulta
MANILA -- Chief Justice Hilario G. Davide Jr. declared Friday that it will be up to Congress to decide on the impeachment complaint filed against him and seven other magistrates of the Supreme Court (SC).
"It's up to the collective wisdom of the members of congress since it is a prerogative of the House of Representatives," Davide told reporters in a chance interview with reporters during a media event at the Court of Appeals (CA).
Davide reiterated his claim that the charge filed by former senator Rene A.V. Saguisag for deposed President Joseph Estrada threatens the country's bureaucracy. "In issue is the institution itself," Davide insisted.
The impeachment complaint is in connection with Davide's decision to proclaim Gloria Arroyo as president in January 2001.
Last September 10, the House of Representatives' committee on justice voted 13-4 in favor of upholding an impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Hilario Davide and seven other justices of the Supreme Court as "sufficient in form," meaning the complaint had been "properly verified by the complainant, properly endorsed by a member or members of Congress and that it conformed with the format of House resolutions."
Aside from Davide, also included in the complaint were associate justices Artemio Panganiban, Josue Bellosillo, Reynato Puno, Jose Vitug, Leonardo Quisumbing, Antonio Carpio, and Renato Corona.
An impeachment complaint needs at least 74 votes before it can be transmitted to the Senate for trial.
Under the rules, the Senate President shall head the impeachment tribunal, except when the President is the one impeached, in which case the Supreme Court Chief Justice shall head the impeachment court.
At the committee hearing, Rep. Didagen Dilangalen, a key leader of Estrada's Pwersa ng Masa party, suggested that the committee allow absent members to cast their votes later in written form.
The committee upheld Dilangalen's proposal and scheduled its next hearing for October 7 for tallying votes.
Dilangalen and representatives Rolex Suplico, Ronaldo Zamora Gilbert Remulla and Emmylou Talino-Santos were among the first to endorse the complaint.
(September 20, 2003 issue)
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