Guingona backtracks, won't submit report vs Merci to Palace

(Updated 6:34 p.m.) Senator Teofisto Guingona III on Tuesday backtracked and clarified that he has yet to submit a copy of the blue ribbon committee report recommending the impeachment of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez to President Benigno Aquino III. In an interview with reporters late Tuesday, Guingona, the panel’s chairman, said he thought his staff had already sent a copy of the report to Aquino through e-mail, only to find out later that his staff had not. Guingona, a neophyte senator, also said he will not submit the report to the President until it has been adopted by the Senate. The report will be presented to the plenary on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, Guingona said his office sent a copy of the committee report to Aquino. “It’s not common practice, but it is in the hope that it will also be acted upon since it also has recommendations," he said. “It’s just for their appreciation so that they can study it," he added. Guingona released last week the partial blue ribbon committee report recommending the impeachment of Gutierrez and the dismissal and filing of charges against the state prosecutors who entered into a plea bargaining agreement with accused plunderer Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia. The impeachment recommendation was made to the House of Representatives while the recommendation for the dismissal and filing of charges was made to the Office of the President. However, Guingona denied that he was lobbying for support from Aquino given the apparent opposition to some of his committee’s recommendations. The senators who signed the report were Francis Escudero, Sergio Osmeña III, Joker Arroyo, Ramon Bong Revilla Jr., Juan Miguel Zubiri, Franklin Drilon, Francis Pangilinan, Pia Cayetano, Ralph Recto, Antonio Trillanes IV, Alan Peter Cayetano, Loren Legarda, and Manny Villar. However, Drilon, Escudero, Legarda, Recto, Revilla, Zubiri, Villar, and the two Cayetanos expressed reservation over the impeachment call because the impeachment proceedings are bound to end up at the Senate. Guingona said the signatures of these senators will still count as a "yes" vote. He also said that he was confident the Senate will adopt his committee’s recommendation. Not common practice Guingona backtracked after Senate Majority Floor Leader Vicente "Tito" Sotto III commented that the submission of the report to Aquino before presenting it to the Senate in plenary session was an uncommon practice. “Ewan, mahirap i-describe. Mas maganda na lang sabihin na (I don’t know, it’s difficult to describe it. Maybe it's better to say that) it is not a common practice," Sotto told reporters in a separate interview Tuesday. Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile refused to comment, saying that Guingona is a “very energetic young man." “I think he is new in the Senate... we have to understand that," he said. Enrile said it would have been the first time that a partial committee report was submitted to the President before it was presented to the Senate during plenary session. He said the report is only Guingona’s opinion as head of the panel until it is adopted by the Senate. Guingona, however, found an ally in Sen. Franklin Drilon, who said there is nothing wrong in providing the President a copy of a report that is readily available outside. “There is nothing irregular about it. It’s already public record. The media already reported the committee report," Drilon said. Both Drilon and Guingona are members of Aquino’s Liberal Party (LP). Aquino had earlier given LP congressmen marching orders to impeach Gutierrez. However, the LP senators denied getting similar orders since they will sit as judges during the impeachment trial. Committee reports Under the Senate rules on procedure, committee reports are approved by a majority vote of all its members. Concurring and dissenting reports may likewise be made by the members who do not sign the majority report. The report will then be filed with the secretary of the Senate, who shall include it in the next order of business of the Senate. Once it is adopted in plenary, the report shall be forwarded to the concerned agency. In this case, Guingona said the impeachment recommendation shall be forwarded to the House of Representatives while the recommendation for the filing of criminal and administration charges to the Office of the Ombudsman. - KBK, GMA News