Cayetano on prosecution dropping 3 impeachment articles: This is a disservice to the Filipino people

[0:00] before the chair makes um yeah just i just want mr with the permission just to clarify madam with [0:08] your permission mr president and mr president officer when you say it's the best interest of [0:14] all can you clarify that are you talking about time that is one your honor including the resources of [0:21] the government and even the attention of the honorable senator judges considering the equally [0:28] important legislative matters which are pending before the senate not to mention your honor the [0:33] upcoming budget heating for 2027 isa-isay natin yun first of all time there is no limit in the [0:41] constitution we can finish this in january we can finish this in february we can take a break tomorrow [0:47] and focus on the budget it is our choice kung ako masusunod unahin natin yung budget may super el [0:55] ninyo hindi pa tapos yung flood control investigation and daming na tiwangwang na [1:00] flood control hindi nagspend ang gobyerno we're in an economic crisis not only because of our own [1:07] doing but the whole world i mean all of us here all of us here legislators share all this concern [1:14] marami na nagsasabi na itong impeachment ay para sa mga politician we know that's not true we know it's [1:19] an accountability mechanism but we do know that the budget next to divine intervention and prayer is [1:25] the most important but i heard today we might even uh change our schedule na naman para mauna yung [1:32] impeachment so first of all time it's in the best interest of everyone that there's fairness and we [1:39] take our time there's no time limit who is saying that we have to finish this by by november i want it [1:47] finished but between finishing it tapos may unfairness and finishing it na unahinto kaso sa budget [1:56] mr presiding officer and mr senate president you know i'd like to put on record i'm very uncomfortable [2:02] with with that i think it will be a disservice to the filipino people number two government resources [2:08] it was the choice of the prosecution you could have started with the ill-gotten wealth and stop there [2:15] but you chose to spend 38 days so kung baga sa suntukan sinuntok nyo na yung defense then sasabihin [2:22] nyo to save time wag na kayong gumanti and then sasabihin yung platform ang gagamitin so this is my second [2:30] question can the court issue supinas for their witnesses to attend their facebook live or press cons [2:39] with all due respect your honor that was in response to the statement of the defense that the evidence of the [2:45] prosecution have been seen by the public yes yes ma'am i understand but that's the problem you put all [2:52] of your witness here in court in a formal process before the filipino people and this is an impeachable [3:01] officer there are only a few impeachable officers in our constitution and this is not purely a judicial [3:09] process as we all know it's a political process also meaning it's not enough dito na ma convict or [3:15] ma acquit yung reputation ng tao yung yung certainty ng tao na siya guilty o hindi so for example so [3:23] that's my other question assuming we don't give the defense the opportunity to present dun sa tatlong [3:30] articles or dun sa dalawa nag present na is the prosecution willing that we acquit her on those two [3:36] uh articles will we will we categorize the dismissal as an acquittal we believe your honor that by the [3:45] withdrawal of the three articles by the prosecution it means that this will no longer be part of the [3:52] impeachment trial and therefore they are no longer proper subject matter of the verdict to be rendered by [3:58] the honorable impeachment so so so we see the problem that was created no problem with the corona precedent [4:04] and with the article that you have not uh that you will not pursue because you did not present [4:10] evidence in this court everyday using government resources getting people's attention but for the [4:17] two articles that you have already done your best and a lot of people agree with you a lot of people [4:24] disagree with you but to say sandali lang winidraw namin o matuwa na kayong defense wala na yan [4:31] is that the kind of democracy the kind of legal system the kind of justice that we want to give the [4:40] the filipino people can you imagine the president so kung galit ako sa koa and i i have barkada one [4:49] third of congress and i tell them don't worry i present lang natin yung evidence and then at the last [4:55] minute i withdraw na lang huwag na lang tayo mag uh formal offer and then uh sa media na lang or [5:03] whatever sinira na natin yung isang tao we already use government so i i don't know many of the senator [5:09] judges here i'm not at liberty to mention them but tama din naman sila if you you withdraw everything [5:15] then wala rin naman choice ang uh defense if they withdraw all four then we have to stop this [5:21] impeachment wala time pag-uusapan but but the reality is when you withdraw one or more but leave [5:28] one all the accusations still stand especially the evidence that you've already already filed so i i do [5:39] not know exactly how the presiding officer is going to rule but may i put on record the following things [5:44] so number one yeah we have to finish this impeachment process with the basic element of fairness of really [5:52] justice kahit anong mangyari dito acquit or uh uh uh convict may matutuwa may magagalit but history [6:03] will judge us whether or not yung elementary uh fairness and due process number two priorities are [6:10] priorities priority dapat yung budget kung masasabay natin bakit hindi in the last few months pinagsabay [6:18] natin session budget impeachment but if we're gonna stop just for the sake na matapos tayong [6:25] november we're gonna suffer the budget is not just passing it no then third uh mr president uh honorable [6:35] members of the prosecution whatever the judgment it has to be acceptable by the filipino people [6:40] and just because there's no food it just because there's no uh people power and just because you know [6:46] know the rating some of us are doing well some of you are doing well uh just because last month [6:53] these guys are doing well this that doesn't mean na tama yung tinatanim natin sa mga kabataan ngayon [7:02] just like you even during the duterte administration the aquino administration we have to do what has to be [7:09] done and we are in the moment and there are certain things that we all believe has to be done but then [7:16] 10 years later we look back so like the corona impeachment it is what it is but we look back [7:21] and also learn from that so i don't want to look back 10 years from now and say na just so that [7:26] matapos natin ito ng november eto yung mga ginawa namin kasi ang dami ng issues eh kasama yung [7:33] threshold and dami na dadagdagan pa ba natin ito by that i am sorry mr senate president for taking this [7:41] time but it was a surprise to us kasi we more or less knew that you're gonna withdraw yung sa bribery ma'am [7:47] but uh to withdraw the the other two you know it's something that we have to all take in [7:52] and at this point hindi naman nag nag uh object in defense but at this point to say to the defense [7:58] you can or cannot do this medyo ma i i just have to put on right mabigat po talaga thank you ma'am [8:05] thank you sir tila senator judge alan you mentioned something earlier about dropping three keeping one um [8:14] that's why it's unfair because the respondent cannot present evidence anymore i agree with the [8:20] presiding officer that uh the bribery case falls under the corona precedent yes but the two does not [8:27] duman man sa house yan na sa media you didn't present the witnesses and the documentary evidence [8:33] here so when you withdraw it i i don't think we have any obligation to ask the defense or to prohibit [8:39] them from presenting defense right but for the two other articles that we've spent the last 38 days [8:45] presenting the evidence here so it's not only the legal consequences meaning acquitted or [8:53] or convicted but also the reputation of the vice president and her her right to a fair hearing a [9:00] fair trial by being able to present their own evidence so in theory in theory because this has [9:07] happened in the united states in several occasions given our research on the matter [9:10] what if the prosecution decides not this one clearly they're not um decides to drop all and completely [9:21] after presenting evidence completely withdraw all yeah that's where i agree with you and i just didn't [9:28] name you a while ago when you drop all no problem because basically she's acquitted and basically both [9:37] sides will go to we will go to the public opinion but the prosecution will lose now this is after they [9:46] presented yes yes but if you drop all that means suddenly you're not interested in prosecuting anymore [9:54] that means there's something happened that made you believe that now that person shouldn't be impeached but [10:01] when you leave even one so whether that's 10 you withdrew 9 that's 7 you withdrew 6 you leave one then [10:08] you're still telling the public she's still not uh she should not spend a day more in office and should be [10:15] impeached so i agree with you mr presiding officer and with our colleagues here na ano pang iprepresent [10:21] ng defense kung hindi naman present yung formal so hindi naman siya mako convict yes in terms of the legal [10:29] consequences of having a verdict of conviction but that's not our fault that's the fault of the [10:34] prosecution ayaw nila i offer it kung in offer nila ngayon tapos na tayo today so but it cannot [10:40] also be the fault of the prosecution because you presented everything then stopped short and then [10:46] withdrew it's unfair to the prosecution and to the impeachable officer now to say na bahala na si [10:51] batman bahala na kayo sa press con bahala na kayo sa social media mag defense that's why i asked the [10:57] question will we will we issue a subpoena for example if they want a hostile witness uh [11:03] na taga sec halimbawa or taga uh whatever amla uh mag-a-appear sa facebook will we issue [11:11] a subpoena hindi pupunta ba yung mga um taga amla uh amlc kung kung sila magprepress con hindi mr [11:18] president so that's the problem absolutely there's a problem i agree with you kung lahat tinuloy o lahat [11:24] winidraw wala tayong problema pero pagka and kung yung lahat ng winidraw hindi ka pa nagpresent [11:30] ng evidence wala din tayong problema pero ang problema natin nagpresent ka na eh hanggang dulo eh [11:37] then you're gonna insist that malakas pa rin yung case nyo on all four cases kasi if they're not [11:42] presenting now and they say na no no we admit she'll be acquitted in the two then then maybe i would [11:48] ask the the defense or would it be acceptable if they admit na acquitted siya dun sa dalawa why [11:55] present pa kung acquitted pero kung sasabihin hindi lang namin i-prepresent pero malakas ang case [12:01] namin pero kayo hindi kayo pwede mag-present ng evidence hindi po talaga mag square uh mr presiding officer [12:08] noted attorneys