House allows ‘creeping’ impeachment

By Jess Diaz
The Philippine Star 08/02/2005

The House of Representatives agreed last night to allow the "creeping" impeachment process sought by opposition congressmen in their effort to oust President Arroyo.

The "creeping" impeachment refers to the gradual gathering of signatures to reach the required number of 79 House members, or one-third of the House, needed to send the amended impeachment complaint against Mrs. Arroyo to the Senate for trial.

Such a procedure is outlined in the impeachment rules of the 11th Congress, which the House adopted last night. It was during the 11th Congress that former President Joseph Estrada was impeached in 2001.

Deputy Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano moved for the adoption of the rules on the part of the minority.

After consulting with Majority Leader Prospero Nograles and other House officials, Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, who was sponsoring the draft rules for the present 13th Congress, accepted Cayetano’s motion.

Minority Leader Francis Escudero told reporters that the minority took the initiative to propose the adoption of the impeachment rules of the 11th Congress to end the acrimonious debates on the draft rules for the 13th Congress.

"With the decision, we can now tackle our amended impeachment complaint against Mrs. Arroyo in the committee on justice. We hope we can begin doing that early next week," he said.

Responding to questions, Nograles said the majority accepted the minority’s proposal for the adoption of the old rules to show the people that "we are not favoring the accused, who is the President."

"The opposition kept harping that the rules on which we started floor debates last week had been tailor-fit for the President. To do away with these debates, we decided to go along with what the minority wants," he said.

He pointed out that the old rules and the new draft rules "are not substantially different."

Nograles said a creeping impeachment will be allowed "but unlike in the 11th Congress, the committee on justice will have to submit its report and voting will have to be done in plenary."

He said in 2000, then Speaker Manuel Villar Jr. made a "shortcut" by not waiting for the justice committee report and speedily transmitting the complaint against then President Estrada when the petitioners had obtained 77 signatures.

Some 42 members of the minority, congressmen belonging to the Liberal Party and party-list representatives have endorsed the amended impeachment complaint.

According to San Juan Rep. Ronaldo Zamora, who heads the opposition’s impeachment team, as of last weekend, 10 more signatures had been obtained, for a total of 52. This is still 27 shy of the necessary 79 signatures.

Cayetano said once they have 79 signatures, "there will be no more wrangling on legal technicalities and the House will be under tremendous pressure from the people to transmit the complaint to the Senate for trial.

"We hope to send the amended complaint to the Senate. If the President has nothing to hide, she should be willing to face a trial," he said.

Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez, one of those who signed the amended complaint, said the adoption of the impeachment rules "is a major victory for the impeachment drive against the President."

"Once the 79 signatures are obtained, no one — not the committee on justice, not the majority leader, not the Speaker, not the majority — can stop the transmittal of the complaint to the Senate," he said.

Cayetano said it is only in an impeachment case that one-third or less than majority of House members overrides the will of the remaining two-thirds.

"That is intended to insulate an impeachment complaint from possible manipulation by the majority and send it expeditiously to trial," he said.

Over the weekend, Sen. Joker Arroyo, who was a member of the House panel that prosecuted Estrada in his Senate trial in 2001, hinted that Mrs. Arroyo would do all she could to block the amended impeachment complaint in the House.

He said, unlike in the case of Estrada who had relied on his Senate allies, the House is Mrs. Arroyo’s "first and only line of defense."

He urged Escudero and his opposition colleagues to breach that defense by gathering the needed 79 signatures.