OSG won’t answer 3 SC questions on impeachment

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), legal counsel of the House of Representatives, has declined to answer three queries raised by the Supreme Court regarding the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, maintaining that these pertain to internal matters outside the SC’s scope.

“This restraint is grounded on no less than the separation of powers enshrined in our Constitution. Being a co-equal branch, the Congress is entitled to respect with regard to those matters which are within its exclusive jurisdiction,” the OSG’s 16-page compliance report read.

The OSG refused to answer which office or committee prepared the draft of the articles of impeachment when it was completed, as well as when the articles of impeachment were circulated to House members and if evidence was attached.

The House also declined to answer whether lawmakers had time to examine the charges and evidence before consenting, saying the inquiry “requires subjective assessments” and is not a factual matter that anyone can attest to.

“Any further inquiry into the House’s internal proceedings, absent a constitutional basis, is unwarranted,” the OSG said.

“To allay any doubt or suspicion of irregularity,” the House invoked Resolution 328 submitted to the Senate impeachment court last June 25.

This resolution, the House argued, would uphold the regularity and validity that the fourth impeachment complaint, which became the basis for impeaching Duterte, “fully complied with Article 11, Section 3 of the 1987 Constitution,” that prohibits more than one impeachment proceeding against the same official in a year.

The House told the SC that neither its rules nor the Constitution give impeachable officers the opportunity to be heard before filing a verified complaint for impeachment or before transmitting the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate.

House looks forward to trial

After rescheduling the beginning of Duterte’s trial three times, the House is hoping the Senate will finally convene as an impeachment court.

The Senate is reportedly preparing to begin the trial proper on Aug. 4, a week after President Marcos’ fourth State of the Nation Address on July 28.

Critics have been calling on the Senate to “forthwith” proceed with the trial, as the upper chamber had unilaterally reset the original schedules on June 2 and 11 and July 29.

“We are looking forward to the actual trial to start,” House spokesperson Princess Abante told reporters at a briefing.

“The House has complied with its duties regarding impeachment proceedings. We have transmitted (the impeachment complaints) to the Senate according to the rules and regulations of the House and the 1987 Constitution,” she said, within 10 session days.

Sara’s rights violated?

Duterte is claiming that the House violated her right to a fair process after it responded to all but three of the SC’s queries.

“They violated my right to a fair process in the filing of the impeachment,” she said in an interview in The Hague, Netherlands. — Delon Porcalla, Bella Cariaso