Congressmen praise, but senators assail martial law

Members of the administration-dominated House of Representatives applauded the move. But many in the Senate believe that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s decision to impose martial law in Maguindanao is an overkill. Speaker Prospero Nograles is praising Mrs. Arroyo's action, saying many, if not the majority of House members believe that the chief executive's decision was “correct," and that “it should have been done sooner." On December 4, at about 9 p.m., Mrs. Arroyo signed Proclamation 1959 declaring martial law in Maguindanao and suspending the writ of habeas corpus in the province to hasten the arrest of those behind the November 23 massacre of 57 people, including 30 journalists. Nograles is confident that the imposition of martial rule, which he says will only be good for 60 days, will not be opposed in the House and the Senate. “Personally, I think that in this case, both Houses of Congress do not indicate any majority numbers with any intention to revoke the proclamation," said Nograles, adding that he would author a resolution to support Mrs. Arroyo’s declaration. No invasion, no rebellion However, Nograles’ perception is not the view of several senators. Francis Escudero, Francis Pangilinan, Benigno Simeon "Noynoy" Aquino, and Manuel "Mar" Roxas II are one in saying that the situation in Maguindanao does not merit the imposition of martial rule because there is neither invasion nor rebellion in the area. [See: Arguments and counterarguments on Arroyo’s imposition of martial law in Maguindanao ] "These are not obviously present in Maguindanao," Escudero said in a press statement released on Saturday. "The current state of emergency would have sufficed to address the clamor for justice for the massacre victims ans restore the rule of law in the province." The administration claimed that rebellion was brewing in Maguindanao. Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera said that according to police and military reports, groups of armed men supporting the Ampatuans were massing in the province. But Pangilinan is not convinced of the administration's claim. He said Mrs. Arroyo should immediately take back the declaration because all key personalities linked to the November 23 killings are already under police custody. "The factual basis for a martial law declaration therefore appears to be nonexistent. The Maguindanao massacre is a case of multiple murder involving local government officials loyal to Arroyo," said Pangilinan in a text message to GMANews.TV on Saturday. "It is clear that invasion or rebellion are the only grounds for a declaration of martial law," added Pangilinan. For his part, Aquino said the people must ask Malacañang to explain the circumstances that led Mrs. Arroyo to impose martial law. He said the President must also be asked on how she intends to use the vast powers under a martial rule and for how long does she intend to implement it. "The rule of law must prevail, constitutional processes must prevail. The courts cannot be abolished there or elsewhere. The President of the Philippines remains accountable not only to the Congress of the Philippines, but to the people of the Philippines for taking this extraordinary course," Aquino said in a statement. Roxas, meanwhile, said that while he acknowledges the peace and order problem in Maguindanao after the massacre, he does not see the need for the government to use an iron hand to solve the problem. “Gusto rin namin sa Partido Liberal na maging maayos ang sitwasyon sa Maguindanao. Pero ang pagde-deklara ng martial law ay hindi ang tamang pamamaraan para gawin ito....maaaring lalo pa ngang lumala ang sitwasyon sa Maguindanao dahil rito," said Roxas in a statement. (The Liberal Party wants everything to go back to normal in Maguindanao. But declaring martial law is not the proper way to address this...in fact, it could even worsen the situation in Maguindanao.) Joint session A joint congressional session may be held on Tuesday (December 8) to tackle Mrs. Arroyo's martial law declaration. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said he and Nograles initially agreed on the matter. But Nograles is apparently reluctant to hold a joint session with the Senate. [See: Nograles: No need for joint session to tackle martial law] “On Monday I will have a caucus with members of the Senate and the Speaker will have a caucus with his House. We will arrange for a joint session on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Batasan," Enrile said in an interview on dwIZ radio. He said he instructed Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri to “make arrangements" with his counterpart in the House of Representatives. Enrile said he plans to suspend the session at 10 a.m. Monday, an hour after the Senate opens session, so they can hold their caucus. Also, he said the caucus and the joint session will not delay the Senate’s deliberation over the P1.54-trillion national budget for 2010. To save face Senator Loren Legarda, who also opposes the declaration, urged her colleagues to assert their role in defining and limiting the scope of the imposition of martial law. “If the Maguindanao massacre had been the basis at all, the declaration came late," said the senator. She added: “There must be a better way to check lawlessness in the area. Is the President admitting now that she couldn’t do anything anymore?" Senator Ma. Ana Consuelo Madrigal echoed Legarda's sentiments, adding that Mrs. Arroyo's move was done to save face in front of the international community. “The declaration of martial law proves how incompetent the Arroyo administration is to handle the situation in Maguindanao. Is this the way to punish her political lackeys by further terrorizing the people?" Madrigal said. - GMANews.TV