By Charlie V. Manalo
The Daily Tribune
The Daily Tribune
NOY ALLIES SOLICITING SUPPORT FROM OTHER PARTIES
Despite the denial of House leaders who earlier had said that they would not be supporting any move to impeach any member of the Supreme Court (SC), that denial appears to be a complete contradiction to their actions which they have been doing in the background, away from media’s prying eyes.
A ranking member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), who requested anonymity, said this was happening today.
The NPC is one of the political parties comprising the majority coalition in the House of Representatives (HoR) yesterday.
The congressional source confirmed to a select group of media practitioners that an impeachment complaint is being prepared against the magistrates and that members of President Aquino’s political party are trying to solicit their support.
It is believed that it is Aquino himself directing the impeachment move, and that money in the tens of millions for each congressman is being promised, with payment upon delivery of the impeachment complaint.
The allies of Aquino in the House are hungry for the tens of millions they will get by way of the pork barrel which has been ruled unconstitutional by the SC.
In an interview, the congressional source said several members of Aquinos Liberal Party (LP) had already approached them asking to support the impeachment complaint being readied by Mindoro Occidental Rep. Reynaldo Umali against the SC justices, prompting the NPC hierarchy to summon their members to a meeting over lunch last Monday to discuss the party position.
“Expect moves to impeach SC justices and to repeal the JDF (Judiciary Development Fund) to be launched by January,” said a senior NPC lawmaker.
The solon then showed the reporters a text message he had received from a ranking party member inviting them to lunch Monday and at the same time advising them not to sign any impeachment complaint as yet.
“During the meeting we had over lunch last Monday, we were instructed not to sign any impeachment complaint yet and simply inform whoever would be asking us that the party is still studying our position on the issue,” the solon stressed.
When reminded that the LP has around 112 members in the House, more than the 1/3 member-signatures required for an official to be impeached,the NPC congressman said the ruling party needs the support of the NPC and other allied political groups, as any impeachment complaint solely pursued by the LP would be construed as having been initiated by Aquino himself.
This was also done during the last impeachment complaint the House filed, making it appear at first that it was a bipartisan move to have the then sitting chief justice impeached.
Afterwards, the LP members joined in, even if it was from the start, an LP move.
House leaders including Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte and House committee on justice chairman, Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas had earlier denied any move to impeach any of the SC justices for fear it would interpreted as a retaliatory move against the high court for striking down their pork barrel as unconstitutional.
So as not to be viewed as a retaliatory move against the SC ruling on the priority development assistance fund (PDAF) or pork barrel, the NPC solon said the impeachment proponents are using the issue of the high court’s decision on the case of Marinduque Rep. Regina Reyes whom it has ordered unseated in favor of losing candidate Lord Allan Velasco, son of SC Justice Presbiterio Velasco.
“The Reyes case will serve as the launching pad of the impeachment case against the SC justices,” said the solon.
“Imagine Lord Allan coming to Congress and insisting he take his seat as Marinduque representative. Of course, Speaker Belmonte will have to reject him as it is the position of the House that the SC holds no jurisdiction over the Reyes case and that the jurisdiction over that particular case solely rests on the HRET (House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal). So what would happen? Would the entire House be cited for contempt?” he said.
Asked who among the SC justices could be targeted for impeachment, the solon said Umali had confided to them that while he wants all magistrates unseated, he, however, would be willing to settle for a compromise by impeaching Velasco.
“Initially, he said he wanted all justices impeached, but when we told him it would impossible to do that, he backed off saying he would settle for Velasco ouster,” said the solon.
It appears that by coming up with an impeachment complaint against Velasco, that would already serve as a warning to the other high court magistrates to toe the congressional and Palace line, which has to do with a current case against the Palace that is pending before the SC.
Asked further if the NPC congressman believes the impeachment threat has something to do with the impending SC decision on the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) as claimed by United Nationalist Alliance secretary general, Navotas Rep. Toby Tiangco, the source replied in the affirmative.
DAP, if upheld by the high court as constitutional, will allow Aquino to continue having his lump sum allocations as well as the DAP, which has been used by Aquino and his budget secretary Florencio “Butch” Abad to bribe congressmen into passing measures or impeachment complaints against those whom Aquino wants impeached, or the measures he wants passed, or rejected, such as the Freedom of Information bill.
The DAP funds were what Aquino had used to pay off the congressmen for coming up with the articles of Impeachment in record time, with well over three fourths of congressmen having signed the impeachment complaint. The DAP funds were also used to reward the senators who had convicted the impeached chief justice, and DAP funds were also used to reward the House prosecutors for “a presidential job well done” though his allies.
“Anyone can see the writing on the wall. The rising tension between the SC and Congress started with the ruling on the pork barrel. And in the event the SC will again rule the DAP as unconstitutional, Aquino would be rendered a lame duck. Without the PDAF and then the DAP, he can no longer control the legislative,” said the source.
When told if any impeachment initiative would not prosper without any funding, the solon retorted: “Of course this campaign is being funded.”
“And you know very well who has the sole access to the funds now,” he added in reference to the Executive.
While NPC has not yet committed to the impeachment bid against the SC justices, the solon said he believes the National Unity Party (NUP), another major bloc in the House, is also not supportive of the idea.
“I think the NUP has also agreed not support the new impeachment,” the solon said.
NPC and NUP, with 40 and 26 members respectively, are key LP allies that supported the administration-initiated impeachment of former Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez and former SC Chief Justice Renato Corona.
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