Bicol Saro Rep. Terry Ridon urged Vice President Duterte this Tuesday to finally face the accusations filed against her in the ongoing impeachment proceedings of the House Committee on Justice.
Earlier in the day, Duterte personally filed a petition to the Supreme Court to formally bar the Justice panel to conduct any further hearings regarding the two impeachment complaints that it deemed sufficient on grounds.
In his two-page response, Ridon maintained that the committee fully followed the guidelines set under the Constitution with regards to undertaking any cases seeking to arraign the Vice President from her position.
The solon noted that Duterte’s submitted petition was a “misrepresentation of facts and a distorted interpretation of the Constitution” and that it only sought to “mislead” the public’s perception of the hearings.
Ridon asserted that the complaints were properly referred through the plenary of the House, that deliberation was not required prior to the said referral, that the complaints themselves did not violate the One-Year Bar rule of the Constitution, and that the proceedings strictly followed due process.
Despite the filing of the petition, he said that the committee was going to proceed as scheduled and that all allegations against Duterte will be discussed in succeeding sessions.
“In the face of these misrepresentations, Congress and the House Committee on Justice will continue to discharge their constitutional duty to hold the Vice President accountable for issues involving confidential funds, unexplained wealth, and threats against the President,” he said in his statement.
In addition, the lawmaker stated that the documents which the panel sought to obtain through the issuance of numerous subpoenas in its previous hearings were set to be brought to the public in coming days.
Ridon sustained that the Justice panel would continue to pursue accountability and that they would remain focused on the hearings “until the very end.”
“It is time to face the truth,” he noted.