Impeach case filed
October 19, 2000 | 12:00am
The opposition bloc in the House of Representatives filed yesterday an impeachment complaint against President Estrada for allegedly receiving bribe money from illegal gambling operators, graft and corruption, and violation of the Constitution.
"I will never, never resign," the embattled President said, reacting to the impeachment complaint.
On the other hand, his predecessor Fidel Ramos supported mounting calls for Mr. Estrada’s resignation, and urged Cabinet secretaries who were hold-outs of his official family to step down.
Forty congressmen and 26 citizens’ groups signed the impeachment document as complainants.
The opposition lawmakers acknowledged, however, they still have insufficient supporters in the administration-controlled Congress for the passage of the impeachment charges.
House Minority Leader Feliciano Belmonte Jr. (Lakas, Quezon City) presented the complaint to House Secretary General Roberto Nazareno.
"We, in the minority, in representation of our constituents and the people in general, and people’s organizations file this complaint for impeachment against President Estrada," Belmonte said before submitting the petition to Nazareno.
The charges cited Mr. Estrada for alleged bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution.
Assistant Majority Leader Rodolfo Albano II (LAMP, Isabela) said Mr. Estrada will now have the chance to refute the charges against him.
He called on his colleagues to give the President the benefit of the doubt and to avoid convicting him without a fair trial.
Among the people’s organizations that signed as complainants are the moderate Trade Union Congress of the Philippines and the militant Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), two of the country’s largest labor groups; the Church-based Gomburza, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Concerned Women of the Philippines, Konsensiyang Pilipino, and Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption.
Former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr. was also one of the private complainants.
Among the documentary evidence submitted by the complainants was an affidavit of Singson, dated Sept. 14, detailing his accusations against the President.
The jueteng payoff accusations hurled by erstwhile presidential friend Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson has plunged the country into its most serious political crisis ever under the Estrada administration.
The charge of graft was based on the governor’s allegation that Mr. Estrada, through a Filipino-Chinese friend, asked for P130 million out of the P200 million released by the budget department as Ilocos Sur’s share of the tobacco excise tax. It also cited a report by the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism saying Mr. Estrada engaged in real estate business through a family-owned corporation which built 36 townhouses in Vermont Park, Executive Village in Antipolo City.
To support charges of betrayal of public trust, the petitioners cited Yasay’s previous accusations that the President interfered in the investigation of the stock price manipulation involving Best World Resources owned by Dante Tan, another presidential ally.
Yasay had claimed Mr. Estrada has asked him to go slow on the SEC probe.
The petitioners alleged that the President had wantonly violated his own pronouncements that his relatives and friends will not receive any special favors from his administration.
They pointed out that Mr. Estrada himself intervened when presidential son San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada got into trouble with some doctors at the Cardinal Santos Memorial Hospital last July 30; and another son, Jude, who allegedly flew a government plane to Cagayan de Oro City at government expense, and left P60,000 in unpaid hotel bills.
The complaint also stated that Mr. Estrada appointed relatives to various government positions, contrary to his public declaration.
The relatives included Cecilia de Castro who figured in the textbook controversy, brothers-in-law Raul de Guzman and Rufino Pimentel and a son of De Guzman.
The charge of culpable violation of the Constitution was based on the President’s order for the transfer to Malacañang by the Bureau of Customs of smuggled luxury items, imported sardines, clothing and other contraband, as well as on his appointment of some Palace officials to dual or multiple positions.
Mr. Estrada allegedly violated the Anti-Graft Law and the Customs and Tariff Code when he ordered the turnover of luxury vehicles to his office and their assignment to Cabinet members and other officials.
The controversy generated by his directive forced him to recall the vehicles.
Among those allegedly holding dual or multiple positions are Senior Deputy Executive Secretary Ramon Cardenas who is also director of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, chairman of the Philippine Retirement Authority and member of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board;
Presidential Legal Counsel Magdangal Elma who also chairs the Presidential Commission on Good Government; Presidential Adviser for Flagship Projects Roberto Aventajado who is also garbage czar;
Deputy Executive Secretary for Finance Ric Tan Legada who is also director of the PNOC Shipping and Transport Group and the United Coconut Chemicals Inc;
Assistant Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Gaudencio Mendoza Jr. who is also director of the Food Terminal Inc. and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority; Presidential Adviser Raul de Guzman who is director of San Miguel Corp. and the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), and regent of the University of the Philippines.
Additionally, Mr. Estrada was accused of committing perjury for failure to include in his 1999 statement of assets and liabilities (SAL) all of his properties and those of his "wife and mistresses and their children."
In his SAL, the President stated that he and his family have interest in only three corporations.
However, the PCIJ has discovered that the Chief Executive and his extended families were listed as incorporators or board members of 66 corporations which have a combined authorized capital of P893.4 million when they were registered.
Besides Belmonte, other congressmen who signed the complaint were Representatives Heherson Alvarez of Isabela, Ernesto Herrera of Bohol, Michael Defensor of Quezon City, Sergio Apostol of Leyte, Loretta Ann Rosales of Akbayan (party list), Hernani Braganza of Pangasinan, Robert Ace Barbers of Surigao del Norte, Oscar Moreno of Misamis Oriental;
Simeon Datumanong of Maguindanao, Mayo Almario of Davao Oriental, Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon, J. Apolinario Lozada of Negros Occidental, Franklin Bautista of Davao del Sur, Magtanggol Gunigundo I of Valenzuela; Ignacio Bunye of Muntinlupa City, Leonardo Montemayor of ABA (party list), James Gordon Jr. of Zambales, Ma. Elena Palma of Davao Oriental, Rolando Andaya Jr. of Camarines Sur, Prospero Pichay Jr. of Surigao del Sur, Federico Sandoval II of Malabon-Navotas;
Orlando Fua Jr. of Siquijor, Roilo Golez of Parañaque City, Romualdo Vicencio of Northern Samar, Raul Gonzalez of Iloilo City, Benjamin Lim of Pangasinan, Eduardo Ermita of Batangas, Enrico Echeverri of Caloocan City, Renato Leviste of Oriental Mindoro; Rene Silos of APEC (party list);
Joy Augustus Young of Promdi (party list), Alejandro Urru of Zamboanga del Sur, Pantaleon Alvarez of Davao del Norte, Ranjit Shahani of Pangasinan, Rogelio Sarmiento of Compostela Valley, Melvyn Eballe of APEC (party list);
Patricia Sarena of Abanse-Pinay, Salacnib Baterina of Ilocos Sur, Ariel Zartiga of AKO (party list), Nancy Cuenco of Cebu and Josephine Dominguez of Mt. Province.
The signatures on the petition were 31 shy of the required 73 (one-third of House members) to send the complaint directly to the Senate for trial.
Nazareno, who is mandated by the House rules to convey the petition to the Speaker within three days, said he would do it in one day.
Speaker Manuel Villar Jr., who has 10 days to put the complaint in the order of business then refer it to the justice committee, said he would try to expedite the process.
For its part, the 60-member justice committee has 60 session days to come up with a report. If it decides to throw out the complaint, 73 votes can reverse the decision and elevate the case to the Senate.
Rep. Pacifico Fajardo (LAMP, Nueva Ecija), chairman of the justice committee, said he, too, would try to speed up the proceedings, adding it should be non-partisan.
Fajardo rejected calls for him to inhibit himself from the committee hearings because he is not a lawyer. In addition, he is a relative of Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, titular head of the coalesced opposition, Lakas-NUCD-Kampi.
The majority coalition in the House is fighting the impeachment petition with a resolution expressing their unwavering support to the embattled President.
Rep. Danilo Suarez (LAMP, Quezon), principal proponent of the resolution, said they have garnered 156 signatories to the measure.
Belmonte rued that they could have mustered more signatures had not the President used the "awesome powers and perks of the presidency" to draw away congressmen from the impeachment movement.
Alvarez charged that LAMP congressmen were bussed to Malacañang, lured by promises of fund releases.
Apostol assured the people that they are "ready for a long and protracted battle if the President does not yield to mounting clamor for him to resign."
Business, political and religious groups have called for his resignation and warned of various economic consequences if he clings to power.
The impeachment initiative must be approved by at least one-third of the 217-member House, or 73 congressmen, before the case can be sent to the Senate for trial.
The President could eventually be unseated if 16 senators vote for it.
The impeachment proceedings are expected to take months, prolonging the political and economic crises.
"It’s going to be a tough fight," said Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez, who bolted the ruling Lapian ng Masang Pilipino led by Mr. Estrada following revelations by Singson that he delivered more than P400 million in jueteng protection money to the Chief Executive, some members of the First Family and certain ranking government officials.
Obsevers have predicted that widespread protests could pressure the President to step down.
Mr. Estrada blasted away at Singson and two of his predecessors who joined the call for his resignation.
The President charged that Singson resorted to destabilizing his administration after he rejected the governor’s appeal for help in his problems with the Commission on Audit over alleged P2 billion in unliquidated cash advances.
"I told him I could not help him because it was the people’s money that was involved," Mr. Estrada said.
He stressed that he remained committed in his inaugural pledge not to give any special favors to friends, allies and relatives.
Taking potshots at former Presidents Ramos and Corazon Aquino who have hopped into the oust-Estrada bandwagon, the President said the current crisis was purely politically motivated.
He vowed to continue his struggle to free the people from poverty.
Addressing a crowd of urban poor in Commonwealth, Quezon City, the President said "no amount of politicking can derail the efforts of our organized and empowered masses."
He said he stated it in English so that the people in Makati could understand it.
He was referring to the anti-Estrada rally in the country’s premier commercial hub.
In a talk with reporters upon arrival from Bali, Indonesia where he delivered the keynote address in the Heads of Asia-Pacific Operations roundtable conference, Ramos said government officials should now know the difference between effective and ineffective government.
Ramos also called for an investigation of ranking officials of the PLDT for alleged wiretapping, hinting they must have been acting on instructions from Malacañang.
He scored the President’s allies for feeding their boss with wrong information.
Showing news clippings from abroad regarding the jueteng scandal, Ramos said such negative publicity dampens investors’ confidence in the Philippines.
He recommended the convening of a core of leaders, regardless of political persuasion, to help address the country’s multifarious problems, adding that "fault-finding and finger-pointing will not solve the crisis.
"These negative developments have set back severely the country’s fight against poverty, and have stunted economic growth."
For his part, former justice secretary Andres Narvasa said there is no constitutional basis for Mr. Estrada to take a leave of absence.
Narvasa said the President is not "physically ailing," adding that it is the only justification for him to step down.
"Evidently, this is not the case. Mr. Estrada is not physically incapacitated. In any way, there is no constitutional basis for him to vacate his office and turn his back on his sworn mandate to serve the people who elected him to lead them," Narvasa said in a statement released by Malacañang.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said any official who will succeed Mr. Estrada would be an "unconstitutional president."
Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said former justice minister Estelito Mendoza has accepted the President’s offer to lead his team of lawyers in the impeachment case.
The senators were divided on the question of whether to continue the inquiry being conducted by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on Singson’s accusations against the President.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said he will call for a caucus to settle the issue.
Drilon said this was the first time in the country’s history that the Senate is conducting a probe on alleged illegal acts committed by the Chief Executive, even as impeachment proceedings have been set in motion at the House.
Senate President Pro Tempore Blas Ople said the panel must wrap up its investigation and turn over its findings and recommendations to appropriate agencies such as the justice department or the Ombudsman.
"Technically, there is no conflict between the impeachment and the investigation in aid of legislation. But the Senate probe will have to yield to the impeachment process," Ople said.
Blue Ribbon Committee chairman Sen. Aquilino Pimentel and justice committee chairman Sen. Renato Cayetano argued that the hearings should go on.
"We are not impeaching anybody in the Senate," Cayetano pointed out.
A grand alliance of opposition parties is fast shaping up as the storm of protests against the Estrada leadership continues to pick up speed.
Former defense secretary Renato de Villa and former presidential assistant for Mindanao Paul Dominguez announced that a newly formed opposition coalition led by the Vice President will replace the Lakas-NUCD as the central party.
De Villa, representing the Reporma party, and Dominguez, representing Promdi, were the first to sign up in the grand coalition.
"We have been working on this for a long time," De Villa revealed.
Dominguez said the scandal spawned by the jueteng bribery charges accelerated the process.
"We have come together to bring about change and a national agenda that will bring back morality and confidence in our government, and we all agreed that the person who should be on top is the Vice President," De Villa said.
Arroyo said the group is coming up with an alternative national agenda that will dictate which direction they will be taking.
The KMU expressed support for Arroyo. "The current administration not only failed to fulfill its promises, but has also worsened the people’s poverty and mangled the national economy," KMU chairman Crispin Beltran said.
Faculty members of the state-run University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City called on the colleagues who are in the Cabinet to resign saying the President has lost his moral authority to govern.
Party list Rep. Renato Magtubo said members of various militant groups are poised to stage mass protest actions in major cities such as Iloilo, Bacolod, Iligan and Davao.–With Perseus Echeminada, Marvyn Sy, Paolo Romero, Romel Bagares, Sandy Araneta, Mayen Jaymalin, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Teddy Molina, Edith Regalado, Antonieta Lopez, wire services
"I will never, never resign," the embattled President said, reacting to the impeachment complaint.
On the other hand, his predecessor Fidel Ramos supported mounting calls for Mr. Estrada’s resignation, and urged Cabinet secretaries who were hold-outs of his official family to step down.
Forty congressmen and 26 citizens’ groups signed the impeachment document as complainants.
The opposition lawmakers acknowledged, however, they still have insufficient supporters in the administration-controlled Congress for the passage of the impeachment charges.
House Minority Leader Feliciano Belmonte Jr. (Lakas, Quezon City) presented the complaint to House Secretary General Roberto Nazareno.
"We, in the minority, in representation of our constituents and the people in general, and people’s organizations file this complaint for impeachment against President Estrada," Belmonte said before submitting the petition to Nazareno.
The charges cited Mr. Estrada for alleged bribery, graft and corruption, betrayal of public trust and culpable violation of the Constitution.
Assistant Majority Leader Rodolfo Albano II (LAMP, Isabela) said Mr. Estrada will now have the chance to refute the charges against him.
He called on his colleagues to give the President the benefit of the doubt and to avoid convicting him without a fair trial.
Among the people’s organizations that signed as complainants are the moderate Trade Union Congress of the Philippines and the militant Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), two of the country’s largest labor groups; the Church-based Gomburza, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Concerned Women of the Philippines, Konsensiyang Pilipino, and Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption.
Former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman Perfecto Yasay Jr. was also one of the private complainants.
Among the documentary evidence submitted by the complainants was an affidavit of Singson, dated Sept. 14, detailing his accusations against the President.
The jueteng payoff accusations hurled by erstwhile presidential friend Ilocos Sur Gov. Luis "Chavit" Singson has plunged the country into its most serious political crisis ever under the Estrada administration.
To support charges of betrayal of public trust, the petitioners cited Yasay’s previous accusations that the President interfered in the investigation of the stock price manipulation involving Best World Resources owned by Dante Tan, another presidential ally.
Yasay had claimed Mr. Estrada has asked him to go slow on the SEC probe.
The petitioners alleged that the President had wantonly violated his own pronouncements that his relatives and friends will not receive any special favors from his administration.
They pointed out that Mr. Estrada himself intervened when presidential son San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada got into trouble with some doctors at the Cardinal Santos Memorial Hospital last July 30; and another son, Jude, who allegedly flew a government plane to Cagayan de Oro City at government expense, and left P60,000 in unpaid hotel bills.
The complaint also stated that Mr. Estrada appointed relatives to various government positions, contrary to his public declaration.
The relatives included Cecilia de Castro who figured in the textbook controversy, brothers-in-law Raul de Guzman and Rufino Pimentel and a son of De Guzman.
The charge of culpable violation of the Constitution was based on the President’s order for the transfer to Malacañang by the Bureau of Customs of smuggled luxury items, imported sardines, clothing and other contraband, as well as on his appointment of some Palace officials to dual or multiple positions.
Mr. Estrada allegedly violated the Anti-Graft Law and the Customs and Tariff Code when he ordered the turnover of luxury vehicles to his office and their assignment to Cabinet members and other officials.
The controversy generated by his directive forced him to recall the vehicles.
Among those allegedly holding dual or multiple positions are Senior Deputy Executive Secretary Ramon Cardenas who is also director of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, chairman of the Philippine Retirement Authority and member of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board;
Presidential Legal Counsel Magdangal Elma who also chairs the Presidential Commission on Good Government; Presidential Adviser for Flagship Projects Roberto Aventajado who is also garbage czar;
Deputy Executive Secretary for Finance Ric Tan Legada who is also director of the PNOC Shipping and Transport Group and the United Coconut Chemicals Inc;
Assistant Executive Secretary for Legal Affairs Gaudencio Mendoza Jr. who is also director of the Food Terminal Inc. and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority; Presidential Adviser Raul de Guzman who is director of San Miguel Corp. and the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), and regent of the University of the Philippines.
Additionally, Mr. Estrada was accused of committing perjury for failure to include in his 1999 statement of assets and liabilities (SAL) all of his properties and those of his "wife and mistresses and their children."
In his SAL, the President stated that he and his family have interest in only three corporations.
However, the PCIJ has discovered that the Chief Executive and his extended families were listed as incorporators or board members of 66 corporations which have a combined authorized capital of P893.4 million when they were registered.
Simeon Datumanong of Maguindanao, Mayo Almario of Davao Oriental, Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon, J. Apolinario Lozada of Negros Occidental, Franklin Bautista of Davao del Sur, Magtanggol Gunigundo I of Valenzuela; Ignacio Bunye of Muntinlupa City, Leonardo Montemayor of ABA (party list), James Gordon Jr. of Zambales, Ma. Elena Palma of Davao Oriental, Rolando Andaya Jr. of Camarines Sur, Prospero Pichay Jr. of Surigao del Sur, Federico Sandoval II of Malabon-Navotas;
Orlando Fua Jr. of Siquijor, Roilo Golez of Parañaque City, Romualdo Vicencio of Northern Samar, Raul Gonzalez of Iloilo City, Benjamin Lim of Pangasinan, Eduardo Ermita of Batangas, Enrico Echeverri of Caloocan City, Renato Leviste of Oriental Mindoro; Rene Silos of APEC (party list);
Joy Augustus Young of Promdi (party list), Alejandro Urru of Zamboanga del Sur, Pantaleon Alvarez of Davao del Norte, Ranjit Shahani of Pangasinan, Rogelio Sarmiento of Compostela Valley, Melvyn Eballe of APEC (party list);
Patricia Sarena of Abanse-Pinay, Salacnib Baterina of Ilocos Sur, Ariel Zartiga of AKO (party list), Nancy Cuenco of Cebu and Josephine Dominguez of Mt. Province.
The signatures on the petition were 31 shy of the required 73 (one-third of House members) to send the complaint directly to the Senate for trial.
Nazareno, who is mandated by the House rules to convey the petition to the Speaker within three days, said he would do it in one day.
Speaker Manuel Villar Jr., who has 10 days to put the complaint in the order of business then refer it to the justice committee, said he would try to expedite the process.
For its part, the 60-member justice committee has 60 session days to come up with a report. If it decides to throw out the complaint, 73 votes can reverse the decision and elevate the case to the Senate.
Rep. Pacifico Fajardo (LAMP, Nueva Ecija), chairman of the justice committee, said he, too, would try to speed up the proceedings, adding it should be non-partisan.
Fajardo rejected calls for him to inhibit himself from the committee hearings because he is not a lawyer. In addition, he is a relative of Vice President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, titular head of the coalesced opposition, Lakas-NUCD-Kampi.
The majority coalition in the House is fighting the impeachment petition with a resolution expressing their unwavering support to the embattled President.
Rep. Danilo Suarez (LAMP, Quezon), principal proponent of the resolution, said they have garnered 156 signatories to the measure.
Belmonte rued that they could have mustered more signatures had not the President used the "awesome powers and perks of the presidency" to draw away congressmen from the impeachment movement.
Alvarez charged that LAMP congressmen were bussed to Malacañang, lured by promises of fund releases.
Apostol assured the people that they are "ready for a long and protracted battle if the President does not yield to mounting clamor for him to resign."
Business, political and religious groups have called for his resignation and warned of various economic consequences if he clings to power.
The impeachment initiative must be approved by at least one-third of the 217-member House, or 73 congressmen, before the case can be sent to the Senate for trial.
The President could eventually be unseated if 16 senators vote for it.
The impeachment proceedings are expected to take months, prolonging the political and economic crises.
"It’s going to be a tough fight," said Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez, who bolted the ruling Lapian ng Masang Pilipino led by Mr. Estrada following revelations by Singson that he delivered more than P400 million in jueteng protection money to the Chief Executive, some members of the First Family and certain ranking government officials.
Obsevers have predicted that widespread protests could pressure the President to step down.
The President charged that Singson resorted to destabilizing his administration after he rejected the governor’s appeal for help in his problems with the Commission on Audit over alleged P2 billion in unliquidated cash advances.
"I told him I could not help him because it was the people’s money that was involved," Mr. Estrada said.
He stressed that he remained committed in his inaugural pledge not to give any special favors to friends, allies and relatives.
Taking potshots at former Presidents Ramos and Corazon Aquino who have hopped into the oust-Estrada bandwagon, the President said the current crisis was purely politically motivated.
He vowed to continue his struggle to free the people from poverty.
Addressing a crowd of urban poor in Commonwealth, Quezon City, the President said "no amount of politicking can derail the efforts of our organized and empowered masses."
He said he stated it in English so that the people in Makati could understand it.
He was referring to the anti-Estrada rally in the country’s premier commercial hub.
In a talk with reporters upon arrival from Bali, Indonesia where he delivered the keynote address in the Heads of Asia-Pacific Operations roundtable conference, Ramos said government officials should now know the difference between effective and ineffective government.
Ramos also called for an investigation of ranking officials of the PLDT for alleged wiretapping, hinting they must have been acting on instructions from Malacañang.
He scored the President’s allies for feeding their boss with wrong information.
Showing news clippings from abroad regarding the jueteng scandal, Ramos said such negative publicity dampens investors’ confidence in the Philippines.
He recommended the convening of a core of leaders, regardless of political persuasion, to help address the country’s multifarious problems, adding that "fault-finding and finger-pointing will not solve the crisis.
"These negative developments have set back severely the country’s fight against poverty, and have stunted economic growth."
For his part, former justice secretary Andres Narvasa said there is no constitutional basis for Mr. Estrada to take a leave of absence.
Narvasa said the President is not "physically ailing," adding that it is the only justification for him to step down.
"Evidently, this is not the case. Mr. Estrada is not physically incapacitated. In any way, there is no constitutional basis for him to vacate his office and turn his back on his sworn mandate to serve the people who elected him to lead them," Narvasa said in a statement released by Malacañang.
National Security Adviser Alexander Aguirre said any official who will succeed Mr. Estrada would be an "unconstitutional president."
Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said former justice minister Estelito Mendoza has accepted the President’s offer to lead his team of lawyers in the impeachment case.
Senate President Franklin Drilon said he will call for a caucus to settle the issue.
Drilon said this was the first time in the country’s history that the Senate is conducting a probe on alleged illegal acts committed by the Chief Executive, even as impeachment proceedings have been set in motion at the House.
Senate President Pro Tempore Blas Ople said the panel must wrap up its investigation and turn over its findings and recommendations to appropriate agencies such as the justice department or the Ombudsman.
"Technically, there is no conflict between the impeachment and the investigation in aid of legislation. But the Senate probe will have to yield to the impeachment process," Ople said.
Blue Ribbon Committee chairman Sen. Aquilino Pimentel and justice committee chairman Sen. Renato Cayetano argued that the hearings should go on.
"We are not impeaching anybody in the Senate," Cayetano pointed out.
Former defense secretary Renato de Villa and former presidential assistant for Mindanao Paul Dominguez announced that a newly formed opposition coalition led by the Vice President will replace the Lakas-NUCD as the central party.
De Villa, representing the Reporma party, and Dominguez, representing Promdi, were the first to sign up in the grand coalition.
"We have been working on this for a long time," De Villa revealed.
Dominguez said the scandal spawned by the jueteng bribery charges accelerated the process.
"We have come together to bring about change and a national agenda that will bring back morality and confidence in our government, and we all agreed that the person who should be on top is the Vice President," De Villa said.
Arroyo said the group is coming up with an alternative national agenda that will dictate which direction they will be taking.
The KMU expressed support for Arroyo. "The current administration not only failed to fulfill its promises, but has also worsened the people’s poverty and mangled the national economy," KMU chairman Crispin Beltran said.
Faculty members of the state-run University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City called on the colleagues who are in the Cabinet to resign saying the President has lost his moral authority to govern.
Party list Rep. Renato Magtubo said members of various militant groups are poised to stage mass protest actions in major cities such as Iloilo, Bacolod, Iligan and Davao.–With Perseus Echeminada, Marvyn Sy, Paolo Romero, Romel Bagares, Sandy Araneta, Mayen Jaymalin, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Teddy Molina, Edith Regalado, Antonieta Lopez, wire services
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