THIS was the point raised Friday by Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon, who said the defense panel cannot simultaneously challenge the impeachment process before the Supreme Court while expressing readiness to participate in the same proceedings, including the Senate trial.
“Hindi puwedeng sabay—kinukwestyon ninyo ang proseso sa Korte Suprema, pero gusto ninyong makilahok sa parehong prosesong iyon,” Ridon, a lawyer and member of the House Committee on Justice, said.
“Either you recognize the process, or you don’t. You can’t do both.”
Ridon, who chairs the House Committee on Public Accounts, stressed that the contradiction is even more serious given that the petition filed before the Supreme Court includes the Senate itself.
“If you have sued the very institutions that will hear and try the case—including the Senate—then participating in that process without withdrawing your petition places you in a clearly contradictory, bad-faith legal position,” he said.
He challenged the Vice President’s camp to clarify its stance.
“Dapat bawiin nila ang kanilang petisyon bago sila lumahok sa paglilitis. Kung hindi, magiging katawa-tawa ang defense panel dahil malinaw na kinikilala rin nila ang bisa ng prosesong kanilang kinukwestyon,” he added.
Ridon emphasized that at this stage, the issue is no longer whether there is a case to answer.
“Let’s be clear—probable cause has already been firmly established,” he said.
“This case is ready for trial.”
He said the evidence on record—from the Commission on Audit, Anti-Money Laundering Council, and National Bureau of Investigation—has already laid down the factual basis for impeachment, including alleged misuse of confidential funds, public threats, and unexplained financial activity.
Against this backdrop, Ridon said continued attacks against the House of Representatives and its Committee on Justice only reinforce the impression that the defense is avoiding the merits of the case.
“Hindi maganda na ang inaatake ninyo ay ang mismong institusyon na inatasan ng Konstitusyon na alamin ang pananagutan, samantalang umiiwas naman kayo sa proseso. Tigilan na ang palusot—humarap at sumagot sa ebidensiya,” he said.
Ridon, who chairs the House Committee on Public Accounts, said the Vice President’s lawyers have been trying to belittle and undermine the evidence submitted by government agencies instead of addressing it directly.
“Minamaliit nila ang mga ebidensiya—mga report ng COA, AMLC at NBI—imbes na sagutin ang laman nito,” he said.
He stressed that discrediting evidence without rebutting it raises serious questions about the camp’s readiness for trial.
“That has always been the tactic. When you cannot disprove a piece of evidence, you assail it,” he said.
“If I were them, I would be closely studying the documents and other pieces of proof instead of minimizing their value.”
The lawmaker reiterated that the House and its justice panel are merely performing their constitutional mandate and should not be the target of diversionary attacks.
He also rejected the defense panel’s claims that certain evidence—particularly video recordings—was “spliced” or “curated,” citing testimony from the National Bureau of Investigation.
“These are original, raw videos preserved by Meta upon request of the NBI and have been properly authenticated,” Ridon said.
He added that the issue can be definitively resolved at trial.
“Let us compare the NBI-validated materials and whatever copies the vice president’s camp has during the Senate trial,” he said.
Ridon urged the vice president’s camp to stop attacking institutions and instead prepare for the next phase of the process.
“Accountability is not resolved through press conferences. It is resolved in a trial,” he said.
“Kung handa sila, humarap sila. Kung hindi, huwag nilang sirain ang proseso habang ginagamit nila ito.”
He noted that Senate proceedings are expected to begin soon following the transmission of the Articles of Impeachment.
Ridon and several members of the House Committee on Justice have cited as key grounds the Vice President’s public threats, COA findings on confidential funds, and AMLC reports on approximately ₱6.77 billion in financial transactions linked to her and her husband—transactions not reflected in their statements of assets, liabilities and net worth from 2007 to 2024.
