Sara asks SC to stop hearing; lawmakers slam 'cowardice'

Title Vice President Sara Duterte Asks SC to Stop Hearing; Lawmakers 
Slam 'Cowardice'

The Supreme Court has received a petition from Vice President Sara Duterte,
Duterte, seeking to nullify the impeachment complaints filed against her. T
The move has been met with strong criticism from lawmakers, who have labele
labeled it as desperation and cowardice.

The Petition

Vice President Duterte's lawyers filed a 62-page petition for certiorari an
and prohibition on April 1, seeking to nullify the impeachment complaints f
filed against her. The petition argues that the House of Representatives co
committed grave abuse of discretion in referring the four impeachment com
complaints to the Committee on Justice without any plenary deliberations or
or vote by the House as a collective body.

The Vice President also invoked the one-year bar rule under Section 3(5), A
Article XI of the Constitution, which prohibits initiating more than one im
impeachment proceeding against the same official within a year. She noted t
that two of the four complaints were either set aside or withdrawn on March
March 2, which should bar the remaining complaints from proceeding.

Lawmakers' Reactions

Lawmakers have responded strongly to Vice President Duterte's petition, sla
slamming it as desperation and cowardice. Senior Deputy Minority Leader
Leader Leila de Lima described it as a blatant, desperate move to evade ac
accountability and derail the constitutional process.

The Makabayan bloc, composed of ACT Teachers Partylist Rep. Antonio Tinio, 
Gabriela Partylist Rep. Sarah Jane Elago, and Kabataan Partylist Rep. Renee
Renee Louise Co, also condemned the move, calling it a blatant, desperate 
attempt to evade accountability and derail the constitutional process.

Bicol Saro Partylist Rep. Terry Ridon described Vice President Duterte's pe
petition as deceiving and a lie in front of the Supreme Court and the p
public.

The Way Forward

In light of this development, it is crucial for lawmakers to continue their
their proceedings on the impeachment complaints against Vice President Dute
Duterte. The House Committee on Justice has scheduled hearings for April 14
14, 22, and 29.

It is also essential for the Supreme Court to carefully consider Vice Presi
President Duterte's petition and decide whether to grant a temporary restra
restraining order (TRO) or not.

Conclusion

The move by Vice President Sara Duterte to seek the nullification of impeac
impeachment complaints filed against her has sparked a heated debate among 
lawmakers. While some have slammed her petition as desperation and cowar
cowardice, others have urged the Supreme Court to respect Congress's auth
authority and continue with the proceedings.

As we await the outcome of this development, it is essential for us to rema
remain vigilant and committed to upholding the principles of democracy and 
accountability in our country.

Edward Lance Arellano Lorilla

CEO / Co-Founder

Enjoy the little things in life. For one day, you may look back and realize they were the big things. Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.