Daily TribuneEscudero likewise underscored that the ‘Senate is an institution of reason and rule; it is not a tool to be leveraged for propaganda or self-promotion.’
OFFICIALS involved in the arrest of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte attend the hearing of Senate Foreign Relations Committee last Thursday.
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF SENATE PRIB
Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Friday called out Senator Imee Marcos, urging her to stop using the upper chamber as a platform for her “personal political objectives.”
Shortly after the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations hearing on the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte by the International Criminal Court on Thursday, Marcos criticized Escudero for blocking the contempt order against Special Envoy on Transnational Crimes Ambassador Markus Lacanilao.
Escudero denied Marcos’s claim he had refused to sign the contempt order on Lacanilao, who was cited in contempt and ordered detained in the Senate for allegedly lying under oath during the hearing.
“For the record, I did not refuse to sign the contempt order on Ambassador Lacanilao. Senator Marcos released her statement and flaunted to the media her signed arrest and detention order even before I could see, much less, receive a copy of it,” he said.
Escudero noted that Lacanilao was ordered detained “without the requisite approval and due process.”
“No less than Chief Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo has succinctly pointed out in his concurring opinion in the Ong case that witnesses accused by Congress of “giving false or evasive testimony” must be accorded stricter due process requirements, none of which was apparently accorded to Ambassador Lacanilao before he was ordered detained,” Escudero said.
He admitted ordering the release of Lacanilao “after several hours of unauthorized detention.”
He said it was both as a matter of regularity and for humanitarian considerations as Lacanilao’s grandfather was to be laid to rest on Friday.
“In order to comply with the requisites of due process, I am issuing a show cause order today for Ambassador Lacanilao to explain within five days why he should not be cited in contempt as requested by Senator Imee Marcos. I shall decide on whether or not to sign his arrest/detention only thereafter,” Escudero said.
The Senate President assured the public that he would review the committee proceedings.
“And I will exercise my duty and discretion in accordance with the law to determine their propriety devoid of a political agenda or motivation, and with the best interests of our people, country, and the Senate as an institution in mind,” he added.
Escudero emphasized that “all members of the Senate are fully aware that under the rules, the power of a committee chairperson to order the arrest or detention of a resource person cited in contempt is subject to the approval of the Senate President.”
He said this safeguard exists to ensure that the powers of the Senate are exercised prudently with due regard for the rights of all and not wielded for personal or political ends.
“For reasons unknown, Senator Marcos appears to have disregarded this longstanding rule or conveniently forgotten that the approval of the Senate President is not automatic nor ministerial simply because she desires it,” he said.
Escudero urged Marcos to refrain from using the Senate as a platform for her political agenda and for causing division.
“I urge Senator Marcos to refrain from using the Senate as a platform for her own personal political objectives and to instead use her name, title, and influence as a bridge toward unity, not a wedge for division. Our people and our country expect and deserve no less,” he said.
“I will not allow the Senate nor the Office of the Senate President to be used to further petty partisan interests, especially by those actively seeking reelection in the May midterm polls,” he stressed.
Escudero underscored that the “Senate is an institution of reason and rule; it is not a tool to be leveraged for propaganda or self-promotion.”
“Senator Marcos says this episode sets a terrible precedent, and I concur but for different reasons. I believe it is a dangerous precedent to allow senators to flout the Senate’s own rules for personal gain,” he said.
Escudero lamented that the credibility of the Senate is threatened when procedures designed to protect due process and uphold institutional integrity are overlooked and ignored for media attention or political gain.
