MANILA, Philippines — The Senate may convene as an impeachment court and hold hearings on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays without disrupting its legislative work.
Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson proposed the schedule to Senate President Vicente Sotto III as impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte continue at the House of Representatives, highlighted by the testimony of alleged bagman Ramil Madriaga.
“I suggested to the Senate President that we hold the
impeachment trial on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 3 p.m. onwards. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, we can hold sessions,” Lacson s said over radio dzMM.
“The mornings can be used for committee hearings so the Senate’s legislative work will not be imperiled,” he added.
He said the arrangement would prevent the Senate from being “paralyzed” and allow senators time to review both impeachment and legislative matters.
He dismissed speculation about senators prejudging the case.
“Too many speculations, some nonsensical about who among the 24 senator-judges are sure to convict or acquit VP Sara Duterte once the Articles of Impeachment are transmitted to the Senate,” he said in a post on X.
“To them I say – only the evidence can speak for me and many of my colleagues and no one else,” he added.
Audit findings
Meanwhile, a final ruling by the Commission on Audit (COA) disallowing P73 million in confidential funds may have already established probable cause for one of the impeachment complaints.
Bicol Saro party-list Rep. Terry Ridon said the COA’s April 10 decision clearly showed that the Office of the Vice President (OVP) failed to justify the expenditure.
“This is no longer a preliminary audit observation. This is no longer an unresolved administrative issue,” Ridon said. “This is the final judgment of the Commission on Audit en banc – the highest constitutional audit authority of the Republic – holding that the Office of the Vice President failed to lawfully justify its use of confidential funds.”
COA found that the OVP provided only vague explanations and failed to prove that surveillance or intelligence activities were actually conducted.
The audit body also ruled that acknowledgement receipts were insufficient to justify the purchase of P3.5 million worth of tables, chairs, computers and printers for surveillance operations in the OVP’s safehouses.
With the COA ruling now final, Duterte and other OVP officials involved are required to return the P73 million.
Ridon said the findings, along with earlier evidence from the National Bureau of Investigation and Philippine Statistics Authority, form the “central evidentiary pillar” of the impeachment case.
Examining links
Aside from the receipts, lawmakers are also examining links among Madriaga, Duterte’s former spokesman Reynold Munsayac and assistant special prosecutor Ryan Quilala.
Ridon said these connections could help establish the nature of Madriaga’s relationship with the Vice President.
“The evidence is clear. The certificate of appreciation from Mr. Quilala and Mr. Madriaga for Mr. Munsayac was given… in a bar in Quezon City. This is the bar which Mr. Madriaga is talking about where the duffel bags containing confidential funds were unloaded,” he said.
Duterte has previously denied any personal or professional relationship with Madriaga, maintaining that only Quilala knew him through ISIP Pilipinas.
However, Madriaga disputed this in a supplemental affidavit, detailing alleged interactions and activities with Duterte with photographs to support his claims.
Madriaga’s connection to Munsayac runs through ISIP Pilipinas, where Munsayac received a certificate of appreciation in June 2022, according to Ridon.
Eyewitnesses
To support Madriaga’s earlier testimony, two eyewitnesses are expected to come forward and corroborate his claims if Duterte’s impeachment case proceeds to a Senate trial.
Madriaga’s counsel, Raymund Palad, said these two people were his colleagues at ISIP Pilipinas.
“Yes, two of Madriaga’s co-accused, also imprisoned at Annex 2 in Camp Bagong Diwa, will corroborate him,” Palad told “Storycon” on One News yesterday. “When I asked them to go down while we’re reviewing the affidavit, they confirmed the deliveries of money.” — Jose Rodel Clapano, EJ Macababbad
