The House minority bloc on Wednesday vowed to ensure that “proper procedure” would be followed in tackling and deciding the impeachment complaint against Supreme Court Associate Justice Mario Victor F. Leonen.
House Minority Leader Joseph Stephen Paduano made the assurance following the referral of the complaint against Leonen to the House Committee on Justice last Tuesday.
The magistrate has been accused for alleged failure to file statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) for 15 years during his previous tenure with the University of the Philippines.
When asked if the minority has reached a consensus on a vote, the minority leader emphasized that each member of the minority with voting rights in the committee is free to deliver their conscience vote on the impeachment case.
The House Committee on Justice is tasked with initial deliberations to determine sufficiency in form and substance of the complaint.
Last March 25, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco transmitted the impeachment complaint filed by Mr. Edwin M. Cordevilla and endorsed by Ilocos Sur Second District Rep. Angelo Marcos Barba to the House Committee on Rules.
The rules committee, chaired by House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez, had already endorsed the impeachment complaint to the justice committee.
According to the rules, the Speaker should have an impeachment complaint included in the order of business, or agenda of the House session, 10 days from receipt. It shall be referred then to the House Committee on Justice within three session days.
Earlier, Velasco promised to be “fair” in tackling the impeachment complaint lodged against Leonen.
Constitutional duty
For his part, Romualdez said the lower chamber has only performed its constitutional duty when it referred to the House Committee on Justice the impeachment complaint filed against Leonen.
Under Section 3, Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, “the House of Representatives shall have the exclusive power to initiate all cases of impeachment.”
The same section of the constitutional provision mandates the House to act on a verified complaint for impeachment filed by any member of the House of Representatives or by any citizen upon a resolution of endorsement by any member thereof.
According to Romualdez, the impeachment complaint filed by private citizen Cordevilla, secretary-general of Filipino League of Advocates for Good Government, was properly endorsed by Rep. Barba in accordance with the aforementioned constitutional provision.
“The ball is now in the hands of the House Committee on Justice, ably chaired by Leyte Rep. Vicente ‘Ching’ Veloso III who had served as Justice of the Court of Appeals [CA],” the majority leader said.
“The Constitution and the House Rules of Procedure in Impeachment Proceedings are clear on the timetable for acting on such complaint. The Committee on Justice, after hearing, and by a majority vote of all its members, shall submit its report to the House within 60 session days from such referral, together with the corresponding resolution,” he added.