“… ‘Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?’…” –Matthew 7:1-3
It was, by and large, a fruitful experience for my wife and I when we appeared as lawyers for Ben ‘Bitag’ Tulfo last Tuesday before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, where an “inquiry in aid of legislation” into the P60 million advertising contract between the Department of Tourism, under then-Secretary Wanda Tulfo-Teo, and PTV was supposed to be conducted.
I learned many things, primarily, the investigation being carried out by Senators Richard Gordon, Antonio Trillanes IV, and Risa Hontiveros was not concerned with seeking the truth. The hearing we attended saw the senators engage in a fishing expedition, trying to come up with facts to support their preconceived perceptions of the Tulfos.
A clear violation of Senate rules
The past behavior and conduct of the three lawmakers shows a pattern of prejudgment; what they are doing is a clear desecration of the mandate granted to them by legislative rules and procedure.
Firstly, no senator has the right to pass judgment on a resource person and declare them guilty or not guilty; this is not included in Resolution No. 5, Section 1 of the Rules of Procedure Governing Inquiries in Aid of Legislation – senators have no power to act as judges, unless they are sitting in an impeachment court.
No right to pass judgment
According to Resolution No. 5, Section 12 of the said policy, resource persons appearing before a Senate inquiry, in this case the Tulfos, should only be asked “matters of fact” and not whether they are guilty or not.
In addition, no senator has the right to take sides.
I was amazed and disappointed to hear Gordon say he spoke with PTV executives prior to the hearing and admitted to asking them to turn state witnesses against the Tulfos. The senator even assured protection for compliant executives.
As Patricia Laurel commented on a Facebook post during the hearing, “Trillanes was throwing questions left and right [at] the Tulfos, [attempting] to elicit an admission of guilt from them, [while] forbidding them to answer him.”
I wouldn’t be surprised if I hear comments calling the Senate a “rotten agency of government.”
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