Tag: impeachment trial

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Lacson: No Threat to Sotto-Led Senate Leadership Amid Possible Impeachment Trial

There is no threat to the Senate leadership under Senate President Vicente Sotto III amid the prospect of an impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte, Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson said Saturday.

Lacson also said he and Sotto have started taking “crash courses” or briefings on legal matters – such as the Rules of Court and Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure – to prepare for the possible transmission of the impeachment case to the Senate.

“Impeachment trial or no impeachment trial, there’s always the possibility of an attempt at leadership change. That will not go away. Such plots are usually hatched during session breaks,” he said in a mix of English and Filipino in an interview on DWIZ radio.

“At least to my knowledge, the majority bloc is solid because Senate President Sotto is leading well,” he added.

In Filipino: Lacson: Walang Banta sa Liderato ni Sotto sa Gitna ng Posibleng Impeachment Trial

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Lacson Proposes Practical Schedule to Balance Senate Work and Impeachment Trial

Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson on Friday proposed a practical schedule to help the Senate balance its legislative work and the impeachment trial, should the House transmit to it the impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte.

Under Lacson’s proposal, impeachment proceedings would be held on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays starting at 3 p.m., while sessions would be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

“Ang suggestion ko, gawin natin ang impeachment trial MWF, 3 p.m. up. Tapos ang TTH, gawin nating meron tayong session. Para lahat ng umaga libre tayo sa committee hearings para hindi ma-imperil ang legislative work sa Senate (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. The mornings can be used for committee hearings so the Senate’s legislative work will not be imperiled),” he said in an interview on DZMM radio.

In Filipino: Lacson Nagmungkahi ng Praktikal na Iskedyul para Mabalanse ang Gawain ng Senado at Impeachment Trial

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Lacson ‘Hoping Against Hope’ that Fellow Senators to Respect SC’s Final Ruling on VP Impeachment

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson is “hoping against hope” that his colleagues in the Senate will respect the Supreme Court’s final ruling addressing the House of Representatives’ motion for reconsideration on the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.

In a radio interview Saturday, Lacson noted that the majority of his colleagues who voted to archive the impeachment complaint had cited the need to respect and obey the high court’s ruling.

“Let’s put it this way. I’m hoping against hope they will respect the final ruling of the Supreme Court addressing the motion for reconsideration. Because if the high court reverses its ruling and they stick to their vote, I will remind them that in their vote to archive the complaint, they invoked respect for the high court,” he said in Filipino in an interview on DWIZ radio, when asked about what would happen if the Supreme Court reversed its ruling.

In Filipino: Lacson, ‘Hoping Against Hope’ na Rerespetuhin ng Kapwa Senador ang Final Ruling ng SC sa VP Impeachment

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Lacson Debunks Insinuations of ‘Playing Safe’ on VP Impeachment Case

“I did not ‘play safe.’ Rather, I am acting out of respect for the Supreme Court.”

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson thus debunked such insinuations from some groups after he abstained from voting on the motion to archive the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.

On Wednesday evening, Lacson had pointed out that his abstention stemmed from the still-pending motion for reconsideration filed by the House of Representatives through the Solicitor General, to appeal the high court’s decision ruling the impeachment complaint as unconstitutional.

“So I did not play safe. I followed the Supreme Court and I do not want to preempt it because it has not issued a final decision,” Lacson said in Filipino in an interview on One PH. “I abstained out of respect for the Supreme Court.”

In Filipino: Lacson, Pinabulaanan ang Alegasyong ‘Playing Safe’ sa VP Impeachment Case

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Lacson Takes Pride in Blocking Motion to Dismiss VP Impeachment Case

Sen. Panfilo “Ping” M. Lacson on Thursday took pride in having played a decisive role in stopping the outright dismissal of the impeachment case against Vice President Sara Duterte — a move that would have dealt an irreversible blow to the proceedings.

Lacson made clear that while archiving the complaint renders the impeachment practically dead, it is better than dismissal which removes any means to resuscitate the impeachment should the Supreme Court reverse its decision.

“I take pride in being the one who played a major role in questioning the motion to dismiss. If the motion to dismiss had prevailed, the case would be moot and academic even if the Supreme Court reversed its decision,” he said in Filipino in an interview on DZMM radio.

“I don’t want to take part in proceedings that would effectively kill the Articles of Impeachment. It’s like the Senate is preempting the Supreme Court. But I don’t want to defy the Supreme Court’s initial ruling that the complaint is unconstitutional either, so I abstained,” he added.

In Filipino: Lacson, Malaki ang Ambag sa Paghadlang sa Mosyon para I-Dismiss ang Impeachment Case ni VP Duterte

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