COULD IT NOT ALSO BE DESTABILIZING IF WE THINK IMPEACHMENTS ARE?

1 IMPEACHMENTS ARE PROVIDED BY THE CONSTITUTION WITH SAFEGUARDS AGAINST BASELESS COMPLAINTS.

What people must worry about is only when the process is railroaded by a partisan majority. But there’s still the great safeguard: senator-judges with the chief justice as presiding judge.

2 THE ADMINISTRATION SUSPECTS A DESTABILIZATION PLOT FROM THREE SERIAL MOVES: the surfacing of

a witness who confirms Duterte ran the Davao Death Squad and did some of the killings himself, VP Leni Robredo calling the U.N. to address the illegal executions in the country, and the filing of an impeachment complaint against Duterte with the House.

YET, DESTABILIIZING OR NOT, THOSE ACTS, AS LONG AS LIMITED TO LEGAL MEANS AND PROCEDURES, CAN BRING DOWN A GOVERNMENT. OUR INSTITUTIONS, WITH AN ALERT AND STRONG PUBLIC OPINION,

WILL SEE TO IT THE CONSTITUTION AND THE LAWS ARE OBSERVED.

The downside is that it is distracting, wasteful and divisive, especially when there is no solid evidence of wrongdoing, no smoking gun, all allegations and fueled mostly by partisan hate and suspicion. Especially that we have more urgent issues to tackle.

IMPEACH DUTERTE? CRAZY. IMPEACH ROBREDO IN RETURN? CRAZIER.

CORONA 2011 IMPEACHMENT. The Republic endured although one couldn’t be certain if it was stronger afterwards. Former chief justice Renato Corona was the first to be tried and removed. Two others impeached by the House -- president Joseph Estrada and ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez -- avoided trial by resigning. Common element: a smoking gun.