Foes file 2nd impeachment rap vs Arroyo

By MARICEL V. CRUZ

The Manila Times Reporter

Over 200 private citizens and organizations on Monday formally filed the second impeachment complaint against President Arroyo.

The group, headed by the Citizens’ Impeachment Case versus Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, filed the 154-page complaint with the office of House Secretary-General Roberto Nazareno. The complaint also contains annexes and a verification sheet.

"The process starts now," Nazareno told reporters after receiving the complaint.

But allies of President Arroyo have predicted the defeat of the new complaint for several reasons, including the fact that they see it as a ploy to delay Charter change.

President Arroyo survived the first impeachment attempt by her critics last year. Despite her victory, persistent clamor for her resignation or ouster has not died down. Proadminis tration congressmen dismissed the complaint by a vote of 158-51, with 6 abstentions.

At least one-third of the votes, or 79 out of 236 House members, is needed to transmit the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate for a full trial.

Yesterday’s filing of the second impeachment complaint marked the end of the one-year prohibition against filing a new complaint.

Nazareno said he would immediately transmit the complaint to Speaker Jose de Venecia when the third regular session of the Thirteenth Congress opens on July 24.

"The Speaker has 10 session days, or until August, to transmit the complaint to the House justice committee," Nazareno said.

The lead complainants include Zeneida "Nini" Quezon-Avancena, daughter of the late president Manuel L. Quezon; Prof. Randy David, the University of the Philippines; Bienvenido Lumbera, National Artist for Literature; Bro. Eddie Villanueva; former social welfare secretary Corazon "Dinky" Soliman; former presidential adviser for the peace process Teresita Deles; former representative Luwalhati Antonino; former transportation secretary Josephine Lichauco; artist Lea Navarro; and Father Joe Dizon.

Relatives of several activists killed since Mrs. Arroyo took power also signed the complaint.

The House minority leader, Rep. Francis Escudero of Sorsogon, and opposition Rep. Ronaldo Zamora of San Juan, who would act as impeachment prosecutor, endorsed the complaint.

Other opposition lawmakers who showed up during the filing to signify their support were Reps. Joel Villanueva of Citizens Battle Against Crime and Corruption; Roilo Golez of Parañaque; Teodoro Casiño of Bayan Muna; Loretta Ann Rosales of Akbayan; and Benjamin Agarao of Laguna.

The second impeachment complaint raises not only the issue of President Arroyo’s legitimacy but also allegations on the rash of political killings and corruption in the administration.

"The new complaint will emphasize graft and corruption and human-rights violations allegedly committed by the Arroyo administration, including media oppression and the spate of killings of journalists and activists," said the House deputy minority leader, Rep. Allan Peter Cayetano, who serves as impeachment team spokesman.

Grounds for impeachment

The complainants accused the President of having committed culpable violation of the Constitution, corruption and betrayal of public trust when she exercised "dictatorial powers to suppress the lawful exercise of the people’s right to free speech, expression, assembly, free press and information in connection with and the legislative power to inquire on, matters relating to or affecting the legitimacy of her presidency."

The alleged culpable violations of the Constitution referred to the "patently illegal and blatantly unconstitutional issuances" such as Executive Order 464, Presidential Proclamation 1017 and the calibrated preemptive response, which were all struck down by the Supreme Court.

These issuances, the complainants noted, were intended "to prevent investigations into her criminal acts, to suppress freedom of the press, freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and to prevent the people’s exercise of the right to petition the government for redress of their grievances."

The alleged crimes also included the controversial "Hello, Garci" recordings in which the President is accused of manipulating the 2004 election results and the switching of ballot boxes containing town-level tallies of votes in the 2004 elections which happened sometime in January and February 2005 at the House of Representatives

Also included is the President’s "illegal" use of P4 billion to P6 billion of public funds to promote her candidacy. The President was alleged to have used and disbursed illegally the 2003 and 2004 budget allocations of the deactivated Southern Philippines Development Authority and the streamlined National Electrification Administration for her presidential campaign fund and "to unlawfully promote her 2004 candidacy."

The complaint also accused her of having "illegally used and disbursed the road users’ tax and the fertilizer funds under the so-called Ginintuang Masaganang Ani program for her campaign and unlawfully promoting her 2004 presidential candidacy."

"The respondent also authorized, abetted and countenanced the malversation of the billions of pesos’ recovered Marcos wealth and accepted jueteng payola which she used to bankroll her presidential campaign and to bribe government officials to rig in her favor the results of the 2004 presidential elections," the complaint read.

Other high crimes by which the President purportedly betrayed the public trust included the political killings [she] allegedly "ordered."

"As the commander in chief of the Armed Forces and chief executive with the power of control and supervision over her subordinates, [President Arroyo] violated her constitutional duty to protect human rights when she allowed, abetted and countenanced the killings of civilians ‘especially political dissenters’ and media practitioners, the illegal arrest and prosecution of members of Congress and political dissenters and infringed the people’s freedom of expression and assembly and their right to petition the government for redress of grievances."

The complainants also accused the President of massive corruption for entering into illegal government contracts that were "manifestly and grossly disadvantageous to the government." Mrs. Arroyo is also allegedly guilty of graft when she "criminally concealed her conjugal assets."

Under this offense is the use of P2.806 billion released shortly before the 2004 elections, P728 million for the fertilizer fund scam.

The complaint also noted the controversial North Luzon Railway Project, funded by a P400-million loan from the Export-Import Bank of China, "… whereby [President Arroyo], together with and through her agents, obtained a 25 percent kickback out of the whole contract price and obligated the [country] to agree to conditions grossly disadvantageous to the government . . . in blatant violation of the Constitution and the Antigraft and Corrupt Practices Act 3019."

The complainants also accused the President of lying to the people when she concealed ownership of various properties and business interests by her and her spouse, as reflected in her statements of assets and liabilities filed in February 2001.

Also cited in the complaint was the alleged use of jueteng money to finance Mrs. Arroyo’s presidential bid in 2004, and her alleged receipt of monthly jueteng payola amounting to at least P1 million per region through her spouse/congressman-son/brother in law.

Escudero expressed hopes that issues of technicalities would no longer be raised against them by the President’s allies in the House to defeat their new attempt.

Zamora also brushed aside the appeal of President Arroyo’s camp to hold the filing of the impeachment complaint because of more pressing issues confronting her administration and because Mrs. Arroyo is on a state visit.

De Venecia: New impeachment bid ‘no chance’

Even Speaker Jose de Venecia is convinced that the new impeachment complaint will fail, because the opposition won’t get the 79 signatures.

"On the basis of arithmetic, I think the new impeachment complaint has no chance. The opposition doesn’t have enough numbers. We should not waste our time," de Venecia said in an interview.

The House majority leader, Rep. Prospero Nograles of Davao City, agrees. Nograles, who heads the House Committee on Rules, also assured the nation that the second impeachment complaint would go through the process "but not as hot as the first one."