Impeachment as a tool to thwart the spirit of the 1987 Constitution
FOLLOWING earlier controversies that have divided us – extrajudicial killings, constitutional change, shift to federalism, threat to weaken the Commission on Human Rights, fake news, and public discontent over traffic woes, there is now talk about establishing a revolutionary government and filing impeachment cases against three powerful and respected officials – Supreme Court Chief Justice Sereno, Comelec Chair Andres Bautista, and possibly, the Ombudsman. The latter, as our statement below states, appears to thwart the spirit of our Constitution with its emphasis on accountability of public officials as well as separation of powers. These moves are indicative of growing impunity. It is no wonder why the Philippines had topped the Global Impunity Index over 67 other countries.
Both Ed Garcia and I thought that these concerns should be brought to the court of public opinion. Thus, we hope that when this piece gets into my Facebook Timeline, friends would indicate their “Like” and share it with others. Here is the Statement prepared by Ed: IMPEACHMENT AS A TOOL
TO THWART SPIRIT OF 1987 CONSTITUTION “Drafted in the backdrop of a repressive regime that rode roughshod on the basic rights of people and dismantled democratic institutions, the 1987 Constitution established firm safeguards against the return of despots and built institutions to thwart autocratic rule, lawless behavior and corruption. The Constitution thus aimed to prevent authoritarian rule in any form and put a stop to impunity that had become part of our political culture.
Besides the bulwark provisions of the Bill of Rights, at the heart of the Charter was Article XIII on Social Justice and Human Rights which built the foundations of a State to address the aspirations of the more vulnerable in society by ensuring that social justice is promoted and the human rights of all is protected at all times. The independent office of the Commission on Human Rights (Art. XIII, secs 17-19) was provided for to encourage compliance by putting in place an independent mechanism to monitor and investigate transgressions against the basic rights and freedoms of the people.
Democratic Principle of Separation of Powers To ensure that no autocrats or despots rise again in government, the democratic principle of the separation of powers between three co-equal branches of government (the Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary) together with the Constitutional Commissions (including the Commission on Elections) was built into the Charter.
Moreover, as a check to the possible tendencies of public officials to abuse their authority, the independent office of the Ombudsman as “protectors of the people” was created (Art XI, sections 12-13). Moreover, to further advance the accountability of public officials (Art XI), the power to impeach those who violated the public trust was entrusted to the representatives of the people. (Art XI, sec 3) The process of impeachment is primarily a political process and a legal one as well.
Impeachment as a Double-Edged Sword
Today, we have a phenomenon where three officials of the land leading independent offices such as the Office of the Ombudsman and the Commission on Elections and the Supreme Court are under threat of removal from office by means of impeachment initiated by a House composed of a super-majority who seem bereft of all independence.
The vindictive character of the Congress and the devious collusion between the officials in the Executive and the Legislative bodies seem to rear its ugly head. By hanging the proverbial Damocles’ sword on the holders of the independent institutions that are supposed to check the conduct of the President, his subalterns and other officials the stage has been set for undermining the principle of the separation of powers while seriously damaging the built-in mechanisms provided by the Constitution ensure the accountability of all public officials – president included.”