While the first impeachment complaint against her was filed in 2009, it was dismissed later in that year in a 14th Congress dominated by Arroyo's Lakas Kampi CMD party. In 2010, with the election of Benigno Aquino III of the Liberal Party as president and the concurrent elections to the House of Representatives and the subsequent political realignment, two impeachment cases against her were voted as sufficient in form, substance and grounds, and the House of Representatives Committee on Justice had found probable cause on alleged betrayal of public trust as based on the two complaints.
On March 22, 2011, the House of Representatives voted to impeach Gutierrez, sending the committee report as the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate, which would have acted as an impeachment court. A vote of at least two-thirds (16) of all senators (24) was required to convict Gutierrez and remove her from office. Gutierrez, however, resigned on April 29, 2011, thereby canceling the impeachment trial in the Senate.
*While only a majority of the regular members (28) is needed to pass a vote, the votes of the ex officio members such as the Deputy Speakers are counted.
The ombudsman is one of the several impeachable officials: the others being the president, vice president, justices of the Supreme Court and the members of the constitutional commissions (Audit, Civil Service and Elections). The following acts are considered as impeachable offenses: culpable violation of the Constitution, treasons, bribery, graft and corruption, other high crimes, and betrayal of public trust. Furthermore, only one "impeachment proceeding" is allowed to be held against an official in a year, although the definition of the term "impeachment proceeding" and "year" have been vague. The House of Representatives has the sole power to impeach, while the Senate has the sole power to try the impeached official. The House of Representatives needs one-third of its members to impeach an official, while the Senate needs to muster two-thirds of its members to convict.[1]
Filing late and defective information that undermined the cases against former Justice SecretaryHernando Perez, who was charged with extorting money from former Manila Rep. Mark Jimenez
On November 18, the House Committee on Justice dismissed the case; while deeming the complaint "sufficient in form," it was deemed as not "sufficient in substance." The committee report stated that "The factual allegations are, at best, a rehash of the allegations for the impeachable offense of betrayal of public trust," and that the suspensions of Tupas and Garcia were justifiable. The report was brought to the plenary on November 18.[3]
2010 cases
In 2010, two impeachment cases were filed against Gutierrez, both by left-leaning parties: first from Akbayan Citizens' Action Party and one from the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN; New Patriotic Alliance). These two complaints were referred to the Committee on Justice which is now chaired by Iloilo's 5th district representative Niel Tupas, Jr. of President Aquino's Liberal Party at August 22.
While Akbayan and BAYAN are both left-leaning parties, they are ideological rivals.
Complaints
Akbayan complaint
In July 2010, former Akbayan representative Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel led the filing of an impeachment complaint against Gutierrez. The complaint cited these issues:[1]
The House of Representatives' Committee on Justice voted on September 1, 2010, that the two complaints are sufficient in form. With the result, further hearings would be held to determine if the two complaints are sufficient in substance.[5]
A week later, the committee voted that the two complaints are sufficient in substance: the first complaint passed via a 41–14 vote, while the second complaint passed with a 41–16 vote, with Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (PMP; Force of the Filipino Masses)'s Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro's 2nd district abstaining as he refused to recognize the second complaint. The committee vote was the first time an impeachment complaint was deemed to be sufficient in substance since the Arroyo presidency. The minority bloc tried to delay the vote by objecting the approval of the minutes, and denying that they were supplied with copies of the complaints, even if their staff had earlier stated that they had received them. Lakas Kampi CMD's Simeon Datumanong of Maguindanao's 2nd district insisted that the second complaint be barred; Majority leader Neptali Gonzales II of Mandaluyong answered that while the constitution forbids two impeachment proceedings, it does not forbid two impeachment complaints, adding that the two complaints can be consolidated for they were simultaneously referred to the committee.[6]
On September 13, Gutierrez filed a petition for certiorari and prohibition to the Supreme Court to stop the impeachment proceedings against her. Gutierrez cited the one-year ban hearing more than one impeachment proceedings. Tupas said that in a previous decision, the Supreme Court allowed two separate complaints initiated at the same time.[11] The next day, the court granted Gutierrez a status quo ante order, or all parties should observe the conditions prior to the proceedings, thereby suspending impeachment proceedings against her.[12]
The representatives protested the status quo ante order, with Akbayan representative Walden Bello saying that "it is an interference with the prerogative of a co-equal branch of government," adding that only Congress can "promulgate" its own rules on impeachment. Speaker of the House of RepresentativesFeliciano Belmonte (Liberal, Quezon City–4th) had earlier said that while it respects the court's decision, the House of Representatives will proceed with its impeachment proceedings. The move was seen to benefit Gutierrez, and former president and now Pampanga 2nd district representative Arroyo;[13]
Five months later on February 15, 2011, the Supreme Court dismissed their status quo ante order, "thereby effectively allowing the House committee on justice to proceed with the impeachment," said court spokesman Midas Marquez. There were seven justices concurring, five dissenting, and another two concurring on allowing the first of the complaints from proceeding; Justice Presbitero Velasco recused himself as his son is a member of the House of Representatives (representing Marinduque as member of the Lakas-Kampi). Marquez said that while there were two separate complaints, "there is only one proceeding." The court ruled that since Gutierrez can still file an answer, hence there was no violation of due process.[9]
However, further hearings were held off as the Supreme Court as not given a final decision on Gutierrez's petition. Speaker Belmonte said that the committee cannot meet until the court's decision is finalized.[14] Meanwhile, the executive announced that it would not interfere with the proceedings at the House of Representatives.[15] On February 22, the committee voted to resume their impeachment hearings in a 21–5 vote, after a meeting with Belmonte, who became convinced that the committee can proceed even without the court's final decision, as stated by Deputy Speaker Lorenzo Taňada III of the Liberal Party from Quezon's 4th district.[16]
Supreme Court Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno later disclosed that the Supreme Court did not debate on the merits on Gutierrez's petition, saying that "several members of the court" had not seen the petition, and that no resolution was made; spokesman Marquez just delivered a news conference to announce the court's ruling. Sereno is the sole appointee of President Aquino; the other 14 justices are appointed by Arroyo.[17]
Sufficient grounds
A day before the committee (February 28) met to decide if the two complaints are sufficient in grounds, Gutierrez filed before the Supreme Court a motion for reconsideration.[18]
At the hearing, Alagad party-list representative Rodante Marcoleta questioned if the committee should wait for the court's decision on Gutierrez's motion for reconsideration. After the minutes of the previous meeting was approved, Nacionalista Party member Marc Douglas Cagas IV from Davao del Sur's 1st district motioned to reconsider the approval of the minutes, which was denied by vice chairperson Rodolfo Fariñas (Nacionalista, Ilocos Norte–1st) since Cagas was absent at the previous meeting. After several minutes of arguing whether to wait for a Supreme Court decision, Rodolfo Albano (Lakas-Kampi, Isabela–1st) motioned to wait for the decision; the motion was defeated 8–37. Tupas read a letter submitted by Gutierrez, and the representatives debated anew on whether to wait for the court's decision; Fariñas later bared his plan on filing impeachment cases against the justices for not reading Gutierrez's petition before issuing the status quo ante order. The committee ultimately voted that both complaints were sufficient in grounds, with the first complaint passing on a 41–12 vote, and the second complaint approved on a 42–12 decision.[19]
Determination of probable cause
The day before the hearing for the determination of probable cause, the Liberal Party members of the House of Representatives adapted a position to support the impeachment proceedings at a meeting where President Aquino attended. Apart from the Liberals, seven representatives from militant parties support the impeachment of Gutierrez.[20]
Gutierrez, who had been boycotting the hearings of the committee, instead sent her lawyer and a reply at the March 8 hearing. On her reply, she stated that "She cannot produce documents because this would render, according to her, moot and academic the issues raised in the motion for reconsideration with the Supreme Court," said Tupas, quoting Gutierrez. She further said that the subpoena given to her was oppressive, and that she has confidentiality of records.[21] She instead attended a press conference of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines where she branded the committee as a "kangaroo court," citing that as a reason for her non-appearance. Gutierrez said that the proceedings were a "partisan political exercise," and that she denied asking for support of Representative Arroyo and her allies in the House of Representatives.[22]
At the hearing, the representatives from the minority hit the lack of due process accorded to Gutierrez, and the railroading of the proceedings. To emphasize the point, minority leader Edcel Lagman (Lakas-Kampi, Albay–1st) and Pedro Romualdo (Lakas-Kampi, Camiguin) brought with them a stack of documents two feet high delivered to them the day before, on which they have to read to make an intelligent assessment of the complaints. Representative from Iloilo's 2nd districtAugusto Syjuco asked Tupas to recuse himself as he has a pending case before the ombudsman, but Tupas dismissed his request. Deputy Speaker Raul Daza (Liberal, Northern Samar–1st) remarked that Gutierrez had already been given enough time to respond to the complaints.[10]
While the hearing was ongoing, the Supreme Court dismissed Gutierrez's motion for reconsideration as the committee did not violate the one-year ban on multiple impeachment proceedings, with the spokesman explaining that "These two complaints were received (by the Justice committee) at the same time. Provided there is only one proceeding – regardless of number of complaints – the impeachment proceeding can go on," adding that the decision was final and no more appeals would be accepted. After the committee was notified of the court's decision, the committee decided to put to a vote in determining probable cause. The first (Akbayan's) complaint was voted upon first, and passed with a 39–12 vote and one abstention, while the BAYAN complaint also passed via 39–6 vote, with one abstention; the abstentions came from Lagman.[10]
Result of the vote
These were the results of the votes according to the Justice Committee:[23]
Result of the plenary vote: for sectoral representatives, each box represents one representative, arranged alphabetically. A "yes" vote is colored yellow.
After the committee votes, the committee will submit a committee report to the plenary which shall be voted upon by the entire House. The committee created an 11-man prosecution panel in case the House of Representatives votes to impeach the ombudsman, while a seven-man committee was formed to draft the report.[24]
The senators from the Liberal Party on the hand, say that they were not given instructions on how to deal with an impeachment trial, as there were no senators present at the aforementioned meeting. Sergio Osmeña III said that the president may have to be more discreet on it, while Gregorio Honasan remarked that Aquino should "refrain from making statements that will be misconstrued as partisan statements."[25] Senators Honasan and Osmeña are independents.
Meanwhile, the executive department denied that President Aquino "gave marching orders" to Liberal Party members of the House of Representatives, and that the separation of powers was not violated.[26] This comes as members of the minority bloc criticized Aquino for "dictating" to his allies in the House of Representatives, with Lagman saying that impeachment is not solely political process but is "impressed with judicial process."[27]
The committee report will include the following six allegations that will prove that Gutierrez betrayed the public trust:[28]
Delay in the investigation of the death of Navy ensign Philip Pestaño
Low conviction rate of the ombudsman
The following representatives shall compose the House of Representatives' legal team that will present the committee report to the plenary. All are from the Liberal Party unless stated otherwise:[29]
Another representative to be decided by the plenary
The weekend before the plenary votes on the committee report, Joseph Emilio Abaya, chairman of the Committee on Appropriations, denied accusations that a text attributed to him saying those who would not vote for the impeachment will not receive their share of their pork barrel. Several non-Liberal Party representatives were angry with the text message.[30] Meanwhile, Tupas disclosed that a "high-ranking officer" of the Iglesia ni Cristo had been calling representatives to kill the impeachment complaint, or don't show up at the vote. Bello remarked that this is against the separation of church and state.[31]
On March 21, the House of Representatives tackled the committee's report. Tupas, Daza, Fariñas and Tañada delivered their sponsorship speeches in support of the committee report.[32] After the sponsorship speeches, Representatives Lagman, Suarez, Marcoleta, Carlos M. Padilla, Syjuco, Albano, Mitos Magsaysay and Cagas served as interpellators. In the period of interpellation, Tupas gave way to Fariñas when it was Syjuco's turn to interpellate. Syjuco then accused Tupas of vested interest; Deputy Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella (NPC, Camarines Sur–4th) reminded him "to avoid attacking personalities," and motioned to strike off Syjuco's remarks from the record for being "unparliamentary language."[33] Syjuco, who called Tupas "a coward," was about to divulge the meeting among Tupas, Tupas Sr., and Gutierrez; Tupas said that as being his godfather at his wedding, he could not face Syjuco. Syjuco later cut short his interpellation, but after accusing Tupas anew of using the impeachment as part of his senatorial ambitions.[34]
Before midnight, the impeachment was put through a vote, after which Deputy Speaker Fuentebella announced the result. With 4 representatives abstaining, 47 against, and 210 for the impeachment, the House impeached Gutierrez.[35] The minority bloc, Nacionalista Party and the NPC did not have a common stand but instead had a "conscience vote."[34] Tañada announced a correction in the tally after some votes were misrecorded, with the revised tally having 212 votes for impeachment, with 46 against and four abstentions.[36] The NPC withdrew the conscience vote and voted for impeachment as a bloc; the newly formed National Unity Party, a party created by Lakas-Kampi defectors was split with some members led by Southern Leyte representative Roger Mercado going against the party's "no" stand. The sectoral representatives also voted for impeachment, in opposition to their leader Rodante Marcoleta (Alagad) who was against. Gutierrez lambasted her impeachment, calling the decision "flimsy" and "lamentable," saying that she did not receive fair treatment and that she is prepared to face the Senate, and blaming "dark" politics with the Justice Committee's undue haste on the proceedings.[37]
On March 23, Tupas and company, including the two leading complainants, personally submitted to the Senate the Articles of Impeachment.[39] Later that day, the Senate adopted its rules for impeachment, adopting the rules used in the 2000 impeachment of Joseph Estrada with amendments such as maintaining the silence of the visitors and neutrality among the senators.[40]
Gutierrez resigned on April 29, personally handling her resignation letter to President Aquino; the president accepted the ombudsman's resignation.[41] With her resignation, the senate canceled the impeachment trial.[42] The senators thanked the ombudsman for "sparing" the country from a "tedious, divisive, and painful" impeachment process; Senate PresidentJuan Ponce Enrile thanked her as the senate can now concentrate on legislative matters.[43]
Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo, often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010. She is the longest-serving president since Ferdinand Marcos. Before her presidency, she was the 10th vice president of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001 under President Joseph Estrada, becoming the first female vice president. She was also a senator from 1992 to 1998. After her presidency, she was elected as the representative of Pampanga's 2nd district in 2010 and continues to serve in this role. She also served as the speaker of the House from 2018 to 2019, and as deputy speaker from 2016 to 2017 and 2022 to 2023. Alongside former president Sergio Osmeña, she is one of only two Filipinos to hold at least three of the four highest offices: vice president, president, and house speaker.
The Second EDSA Revolution, also known as the Second People Power Revolution, EDSA 2001, or EDSA II, was a political protest from January 17–20, 2001 which peacefully overthrew the government of Joseph Estrada, the thirteenth president of the Philippines. Following allegations of corruption against Estrada and his subsequent investigation by Congress, impeachment proceedings against the president were opened on January 16. The decision by several senators not to examine a letter which would purportedly prove Estrada's guilt sparked large protests at the EDSA Shrine in Metro Manila, and calls for Estrada's resignation intensified in the following days, with the Armed Forces withdrawing their support for the president on January 19. On January 20 Estrada resigned and fled Malacañang Palace with his family. He was succeeded by Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who had been sworn into the presidency by Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. several hours earlier.
Impeachment in the Philippines is an expressed power of the Congress of the Philippines to formally charge a serving government official with an impeachable offense. After being impeached by the House of Representatives, the official is then tried in the Senate. If convicted, the official is either removed from office or censured.
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Renato Tereso Antonio Coronado Corona was a Filipino judge who was the 23rd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from 2010 to 2012. He served as an associate justice after being appointed by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on April 9, 2002, and later as Chief Justice on May 12, 2010, upon the retirement of Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Prospero Arreza Pichay Jr., also known as Butch Pichay, is a Filipino politician who served as Representative of Surigao del Sur's 1st district in the Philippine House of Representatives from 1998 to 2007 and from 2016 to 2022. He was the chairman of the House Committee on National Defense in the 13th Congress and deputy speaker in the 17th and 18th Congresses. He is a member of the formerly dominant political party Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino and was a senatorial aspirant in the 2007 Philippine Senate election but lost.
Ma. Merceditas Consunji Navarro Gutierrez is a Filipino government official who is currently serving as member of the board of trustees of Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). Following her graduation from the Ateneo de Manila University Law School in 1973, she established herself as a significant figure within the governmental sphere through key appointments. Aside from becoming a two-time Justice Secretary of the Philippine Justice Department, Gutierrez also became the first woman to head the post of Ombudsman. She assumed the position on December 1, 2005, and resigned from office on May 6, 2011.
Niel "Junjun" Causing Tupas Jr. is a Filipino lawyer and politician. He served as a member of the Philippine House of Representatives representing the 5th District of Iloilo from 2007 to 2016.
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The 2010 Philippine presidential and vice presidential elections were held on Monday, May 10, 2010. The incumbent President of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, was ineligible to seek re-election as per the 1987 Constitution.
Lakas–Christian Muslim Democrats, abbreviated as Lakas–CMD and also known simply as Lakas, is a political party in the Philippines. Lakas–CMD is considered to be on the centre-right of the political spectrum and is influenced by Christian democracy and Islamic democracy. Since the 2022 elections, Lakas–CMD is currently the biggest party in the House of Representatives, with the party's president, Martin Romualdez, serving as Speaker of the House. The party is a dominant member of the Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas led by President Bongbong Marcos.
The 15th Congress of the Philippines, composed of the Philippine Senate and House of Representatives, met from July 26, 2010, until June 6, 2013, during the first three years of Benigno Aquino III's presidency. The convening of the 15th Congress followed the 2010 general elections, which replaced half of the Senate membership and the entire membership of the House of Representatives.
The 2010 Philippine House of Representatives elections were held on May 10, 2010, to elect members to the House of Representatives of the Philippines to serve in the 15th Congress of the Philippines from June 30, 2010, to June 30, 2013. The Philippines uses parallel voting for seats in the House of Representatives; a voter has two votes: one for a representative from one's legislative district, and another for a sectoral representative via closed lists under the party-list system, with a 2% election threshold and 3-seat cap, when the parties with 2% of the national vote or more not meeting the 20% of the total seats, parties with less than 2% of the vote will get one seat each until the 20% requirement is met.
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The 2013 election of members to the Senate of the Philippines was the 31st election to the Senate of the Philippines. It was held on Monday, May 13, 2013, to elect 12 of the 24 seats in the Senate. The winners in this election joined the winners of the 2010 election to form the 16th Congress of the Philippines. The senators elected in 2010 will serve until June 30, 2016, while the senators elected in this election will serve up to June 30, 2019. The elections to the House of Representatives as well as local elections occurred on the same date. The Philippines use plurality-at-large voting for seats in the Senate: the twelve candidates with the highest number of votes win the twelve seats up for election. The Senate seat vacated by President Benigno Aquino III in 2010 was among the twelve seats to be put for election.
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Anthony Rolando Torillo Golez Jr. is a Filipino politician and the current representative of Malasakit at Bayanihan Foundation party-list group in the House of Representatives of the Philippines. He previously served as the representative for the Lone District of Bacolod City in 2010. Prior to that, he was the Presidential Spokesperson at the Office of the President in 2009. He was also the senior deputy press secretary at the Office of the President in 2008, senior deputy presidential spokesperson and undersecretary at the Office of the President in 2007, and the government spokesperson for disaster management at the National Disaster Coordinating Council in 2005 in which his work led him to being named him as one of "The Outstanding Men of the Philippines" in 2007.
↑ Marlon Ramos, Michael Lim Ubac (September 15, 2010). "Swift SC mercy for Merci". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on September 17, 2010. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
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