House to tackle procedure on Sereno impeachment

THE HOUSE committee on rules is set to discuss today the procedures on the pending impeachment case against ousted Chief Justice Maria Lourdes P.A. Sereno.

“The Committee Report of the Justice (Committee) is included in our agenda tomorrow,” Majority Leader Rodolfo C. Fariñas told reporters in a text message Monday.

He explained the committee on rules has jurisdiction over rules of procedures in impeachment proceedings, “hence, (the committee) will decide what to do with it, and when to do it, subject to the 10-session day period provided by the House rules.”

The Supreme Court on Friday granted the quo warranto petition filed by Solicitor-General Jose C. Calida to unseat Ms. Sereno as Chief Justice. The decision is not yet final and still subject to a motion for reconsideration by Ms. Sereno.

Mr. Fariñas had earlier said the committee will wait for the Supreme Court ruling to be final before it brings the matter to the plenary.

“Under our rules, the committee on rules has ten (10) session days from receipt of the report of the committee on justice to calendar it for consideration by the House,” he said.

For his part, committee on justice chair Reynaldo V. Umali said he will propose stopping the impeachment process. “Ang position na ibibigay ko sa House rules committee na tuldukan na natin ito after all makakasama pa kung pagbotohan at aakyat sa Senado dahil baka magkaroon pa ng constitutional crisis (The position I will raise to the House rules committee is to put a stop to the impeachment, after all, voting on it and transmitting it to the Senate may be complicated as it can result in a constitutional crisis)” Mr. Umali said in a radio interview over DZBB Sunday.

He asserted that while the Constitution provides for impeachable officers to be removed by impeachment, it does not restrict the Supreme Court from removing officials through other means, in this case a quo warranto petition.