2 months ago
26
Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!
Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.
Visit Suniway.ph to learn
Delon Porcalla - The Philippine Star
February 3, 2026 | 12:00am
“We don’t have to assert our independence. Our independence is laid down by the law. There is a separation of powers where each department shouldn’t cross each other’s turf,” House Senior Deputy Majority Leader Lorenz Defensor told reporters.
Philstar.com / Erwin Cagadas, file
MANILA, Philippines — Invoking the time-honored constitutionally guaranteed doctrine on separation of powers, a senior administration lawmaker from the House of Representatives declared yesterday that the chamber will adopt its own rules on impeachment, without necessarily complying with the Supreme Court’s recent ruling.
“We don’t have to assert our independence. Our independence is laid down by the law. There is a separation of powers where each department shouldn’t cross each other’s turf,” House Senior Deputy Majority Leader Lorenz Defensor told reporters.
“I don’t see any clear sign of grave abuse of discretion on the part of the rules of the House. It follows the intent of the 1987 Constitution, especially when it comes to the initiation of impeachment complaints,” Defensor said.
The House official made the pronouncements in light of the confusion brought about by the decision of the SC on the impeachment case of Vice President Sara Duterte, which in effect tied the hands of Congress with regard to handling cases of all impeachable officials.
“It bothers me that they (SC justices) are dictating on how we interpret our session days. It bothers me that they are suggesting how we should proceed with impeachment referral, especially if impeachment complaints (are) endorsed by all members of the House,” Defensor argued.
He said they will adopt their House rules based on the intent of the framers of the Constitution.
“Let’s leave the session days as it is, but for impeachment complaints we will follow the SC that a session day is a calendar day without expressly saying that in the House rules on impeachment,” he said.
Lawyer Rene Sarmiento, one of the framers of the 1987 Constitution, criticized the tribunal’s ruling in the Duterte case. “There is judicial overreach and judicial intrusion in the SC decision. It also emasculated impeachment as a tool to hold officials accountable.”
“The recent SC ruling makes future impeachment cases harder to move forward. The House can follow the SC decision and craft rules around it, or the lower chamber can insist on its independence,” Sarmiento said.
