In the regular Senate sessions and during the initial session of the impeachment court last week, we saw not only a lack of decorum among the legislators but, worse, a mockery of the impeachment proceedings.
The clip of Sen. Francis Tolentino’s speech was only a manifestation. The impeachment case of Vice President Sara Duterte was remanded to the House of Representatives on June 10 but “is not dismissed” according to Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano.
The people see an attempt to ignore their desire for accountability and protect Duterte. They are marching and making their voices heard. Photos and videos by Bullit Marquez for VERA Files.
These are some scenes inside the Senate plenary hall before the 18-5 vote was taken. Take note of Villanueva’s moves especially the last photo.
What is clear in the statements of these senators, who are holding very powerful positions in the chamber, is that they selectively use the law to spare Sara Duterte from being held accountable for her misdeeds.
Ang tanong kung pwedeng ipagpatuloy ng papasok na 20th Congress—na magsisimula ng termino sa tanghali ng Hunyo 30 ngunit magpupulong bilang isang legislative body sa Hulyo 28—ang proseso ng impeachment o hindi ay nananatiling walang katiyakan.
The question on whether or not the incoming 20th Congress—whose term begins at noon on June 30 but will convene as a legislative body on July 28—could continue the impeachment process remains unsettled.
The Commission on Elections proclaimed May 17 the 12 who won in the May 12 senatorial elections.
News headlines from May 15 used the words nullified, voided, reversed and remanded to refer to an April 30 ruling of the Court of Appeals in granting a petition for certiorari on a drug case in which former senator Leila de Lima had been acquitted.
With Bam Aquino poised to make a Senate comeback based on his high ranking in the May 12 polls, VERA Files Fact Check observed a barrage of posts online questioning the role he played in the passing of the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act.
