WHETHER or not the Senate Impeachment Court’s ruling on the sub judice rule would affect the prosecution, House prosecutor and Manila Rep. Joel Chua said Sunday that the prosecution will comply with the court’s decision.
He, however, also appealed for some flexibility in its implementation to allow both the prosecution and defense to address misinformation surrounding Vice President Sara Z. Duterte’s impeachment trial.
Speaking in an interview with dzBB’s Bantay Balita sa Kongreso with Nimfa Ravelo and Isa Avendaño-Umali, Chua said the House prosecution respects the Impeachment Court, its senator-judges, and presiding officer Sen. Chiz Escudero, as the court weighs how restrictions on public statements should be applied to parties involved in the proceedings.
“Of course, tayo naman ginagalang natin ang ating impeachment court, ang ating senator-judges, lalong lalo na ang napakahusay na presiding officer natin si Senator Chiz Escudero,” Chua said.
He stressed, however, that impeachment proceedings involve matters of significant public interest and differ from ordinary court proceedings where the sub judice rule may be more strictly enforced.
Chua said the case involves public funds and the country’s second-highest elected official, making it all the more important for Filipinos to understand what is happening inside the Impeachment Court and what evidence both sides have presented.
“Ang sa amin lang naman kasi, ang pinapakisuyo lang naman namin, dahil alam mo itong impeachment hindi naman kasi ito kagaya ng mga normal na court hearing na kung saan ‘yung sub judice ay talagang mariin na pinatutupad dahil dito sa impeachment process, ito ay imbued with public interest,” he said.
He added that the prosecution’s concern is that tighter restrictions on public statements could make it more difficult to respond to false or misleading information circulating about the proceedings.
“Now, bakit ko sinasabi na sana mabigyan kami ng konting flexibility? Kasi ang kalaban namin dito ay fake news, ang mga naglipana fake news,” Chua said.
He cited edited and spliced videos as an example of content that could give the public a misleading account of what transpired during the hearings.
Chua instead suggested allowing legitimate news outlets to cover the trial from inside the Senate plenary hall, saying they play an important role in helping the public understand what truly transpired during the proceedings and what evidence was presented by both the prosecution and the defense.
“Sana bigyan din ng opportunity ang ilang mga media kagaya ng mga malalaking media na mabigyan ng espasyo sa loob ng senate impeachment hearing. Kung sa ganun, talagang nakikita ng mga tao kung ano ba talaga ang ginagawa naming lahat ‘di ba,” he said.
He warned that if parties directly involved in the case are completely prevented from speaking, misleading accounts of the proceedings could go unanswered.
“So kung kami ay pipigilan na makapagsalita, paano namin mailalahad ang totoong nangyari samantalang kami po yung prosecution at tsaka ‘yung mga defense counsel, eh kami talaga ang nandoon, kami ang nakakaalam kung ano talaga ang nangyayari at kung bakit naipresenta ang nasabing ebidensya,” Chua said.
The Senate impeachment court is expected to clarify the application of the sub judice rule to parties involved in the vice president’s impeachment trial amid concerns over public statements and social media posts related to the proceedings.
Despite raising concerns over disinformation, Chua maintained that the prosecution would respect the impeachment court’s authority over the conduct of the trial and abide by its ruling on public statements.
metrosundaily
