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MANILA, Philippines -- The leader of the opposition bloc in the House of Representatives on Saturday backed Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona's motion to first determine the validity of the signature in the impeachment complaint.
Albay Representative Edcel Lagman said it is important to know if the complaint was indeed verified by the 188 House members who signed it.
Lagman, who is also the minority leader, said the signatures of the 188 congressmen were used as the "speed ticket" to impeach Corona and bring the Articles of Impeachment against him in the Senate for trial.
"A prior determination of the legality and validity of the verification is not dilatory but necessary to place the horse before the cart, a valid verification as a condition precedent to impeachment and trial," he said in a statement.
"If the validity of the verification is sustained by the Senate, then the impeachment trial must proceed. However, if the verification is found to be flawed and fatally defective, then the Senate must dismiss the Articles of Impeachment and return the infirm complaint to the House of Representatives to complete the verification process of at least 1/3 of the Representatives and re-file the same or for the Committee on Justice to conduct the impeachment proceedings if 1/3 is not obtained," he added.
Earlier, Corona asked the Senate to first hold hearings to validate the 188 signatures before holding trial, arguing that not all of those who signed were able to thoroughly study the charges.
Lagman cited that a valid verification is required by the Constitution and the Rules on Impeachment.
According to him, there is a valid verification under the House Rules of Procedure in Impeachment Proceedings if the complainants swear under oath that they “
have read the contents” of the complaint, and that “the allegations therein are true of our own knowledge and belief on the basis of
our reading and appreciation of documents and other records pertinent thereto."
During the caucus of the majority on December 12, Iloilo Representative Niel Tupas Jr., the chairman of the justice committee, explained to the House members the eight charges against Corona contained in the complaint.
Several key members of the majority bloc, however, did not sign it, saying they have yet to full read its content, including Batangas Rep. Hermilando Mandanas, Ilocos Norte Rep. Rodolfo Farinas, Cavite Rep. Crispin Remulla, Mumtinlupa Rep. Rodolfo Biazon, and Navotas Rep. Tobias Tiangco.
Tiangco later on left the majority bloc to be independent, saying he did not like the swiftness by which the impeachment proceedings was conducted.
Lagman said it was not sufficient that a third party explained to the complainants the contents of the complainant or showed to them a power point presentation. He added that personal reading and appreciation of the complaint is mandatory.
"It is physically impossible for 188 Representatives to have read and understood the 57-page complaint in a couple of hours given the admission that only four (4) hard copies were available in the caucus called for the affixing of the complainants’ signatures during which no questions were entertained," he added.
