Posted by geemiz | Posted in Trivias & Biographies | Posted on 30-05-2012
Tags: Philippine Politics
“On Article II of the Articles of Impeachment against Hon. Chief Justice Renato C. Corona”
I will not discuss what the prosecution and the defense had already argued in their closing arguments. Mr. President, esteemed colleagues. The impeachment is a political process, no a political assassination. An impeachment aspires to be a judicial proceeding that makes imperative that it sticks to judicial rules. An impeachment must ever uphold the dues process that no citizen high or low can be denied, that is why we wear judicial robe as you see, to listen, to ponder and decide like judge according to law.
What started in the House was not an impeachment, for an impeachment is an accusation accompanied by necessary formalities, attended by the appropriate solemnities, flanked by the liberties and guarantees by the genuine grand jury proceeding afforce.
The purpose is to arrive at a sound finding of probable cause, sufficient to lodge a valid complaint charging real offense before the appropriate tribunal.
The Senate is being asked to remove the chief justice form office all because he submitted an allegedly erroneous SALN. The Senate trial could be as close to a criminal proceeding and a court of law as non-lawyers can approximate, thus far are all the great of sorties agreed.
What has happened is the passage to which the Senate President once warned that we were veering close to a bill of attainder. A bill of attainder is a law passed by one house and approved by the other. Creating an offense where there was none, inventing a crime out of actions, willful or not, that were innocent when they were performed. It is a legislative act of convicting an accused of acts that were not offenses in the very measure by which is content through a vote instead of a trial on the basis of accusations taken as proof.
I cannot imagine removing a chief justice on account of a SALN. Today, we are one step from violating the Constitution and passing a bill of attainder, no one can stop us if we do not stop ourselves. This is not justice, political or legal, this is certainly not law, for sure it is not the law of the Constitution. It is only naked power as it was in 1972.
I have not thought that I would see it again so brazenly performed, but for what it is worth I cast my vote, if not for innocence falsely accused of offenses yet to exist, and if not for the law and the Constitution that we were feverish to restore under Cory Aquino, then because it is dangerous not to do what is right when soon we shall stand before the Lord, I vote to acquit.
Source:
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/33251/senator-joker-arroyo-corona-not-guilty
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Vote Speech: Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile
Vote Speech: Senator Miriam Defensor
Vote Speech: Senator Bongbong Marcos
Where were you when GMA declared Martial Law over Maguindanao in December 2009?
You broke my heart.
I salute you Sen. Arroyo for your precise and clear description of the “Impeachment” exercise orchestrated by the political animal in the lower house. I find your assessment devoid of political inclinations. Thank you for providing us with an intelligent analysis.