Aquino confident case vs Merci strong

President Benigno Aquino III believes in the fairness of the senators who will sit as judges in the impeachment trial of Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez as much as he believes in the strength and merit of the complaints against her. “Certainly, the President believes in the fairness of the senators—there’s no doubt about it," presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said at a press briefing in Malacañang Thursday when asked if President Aquino is confident that there will be a fair hearing. He said President Aquino also believes that the articles of impeachment will stand to convict Gutierrez. “The President has every confidence that the Articles of Impeachment has a strong basis to remove the incumbent Ombudsman from office," he said. The Senate will convene as an impeachment court on May 9, after the six-week break of Congress, at around 2 p.m. with Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile as the presiding officer. Gutierrez has been impeached at the House of Representatives for betrayal of public trust stemming from her alleged inaction in several high-profile cases. Stumbling block Lacierda said President Aquino rallied the people to support the impeachment trial because he believes that a new Ombudsman “will help along the path of reform." “We’ve already maintained that the incumbent Ombudsman has been a stumbling block in our reform efforts," he said. He said the Aquino administration has not been filing cases against those they have found to be liable because they believe that it will not serve the best interest of the government while Gutierrez remains in her post. “Our cases will be diminished in substance, our cases will be reduced to either a plea bargain, there is no significant motivation on the part of the incumbent Ombudsman to see things right to prosecute officials who may belong to the past administration—that is our fear," he said. He further said that they believe that once Gutierrez is removed, they can push through with their efforts on reform. “That’s why the President strongly believes and asked the people to support the impeachment process. Again, the impeachment will be witnessed by the entire Filipino people with the senator-judges sitting in judgment against impeachment," Lacierda said. Enrile to colleagues: Study court rules Meanwhile, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile on Thursday urged his colleagues to maximize the six-week break by brushing up on their knowledge of court rules. “They have to read the Rules and if possible, re-read the Rules of Evidence and the Rules of Court. We’re going to use the Rules that are used in adversarial proceedings," he said. Enrile said some senators will be leaving the country in the middle of the impeachment proceedings to attend legislative conferences. “We have an obligation to our counterparts abroad to have representation," he said. While no senator has yet come up to him to inform him about going on a personal trip abroad, Enrile said his colleagues are still free to do so just as long as they use their own money and not Senate funds. Enrile, however, stressed that even if senators are out of the country during the six-week break, it does not mean they could not prepare for the impeachment trial. “Preparation can be done while you are abroad. You can read the Articles of Impeachment. You can read the Rules. You can read the Rules of evidence while you are travelling," he said. For his part, Senate President Pro Tempore Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada, who is not a lawyer, admitted that he is thinking about asking the help of lawyers to help him prepare for the impeachment trial. “I recommended that all non-lawyer senators take a crash course on litigation. I’ll be having a briefing with a trial lawyer," he said. Estrada said he might be consulting with a justice either from the Sandiganbayan or the Court of Appeals. Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri has earlier said he would be hiring the services of a criminal lawyer to help him out in the complexities of litigation. - KBK, GMA News