Senate President Pro Tempore Panfilo Lacson on Friday dismissed remarks made by former Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo regarding the potential impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte, calling them “nonsensical.”
Lacson’s reaction followed Panelo’s claim that Lacson, alongside Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Senators Risa Hontiveros and Kiko Pangilinan, would vote to convict the Vice President if an impeachment case reached the Senate.
The senator accused Panelo of preempting the votes of the senators and questioned his motives.
“Why is Panelo trying to sound smarter than us? No one can speak on my behalf,” Lacson said in a television interview on April 17.
Lacson emphasized that if an impeachment trial were to occur, senators would act as judges and must remain “guided by the evidence.”
He took offense at Panelo’s characterization of the lawmakers during his public statements.
“We haven’t reached the trial stage, why is he preempting us and calling us ‘pusakal/feral’?” Lacson asked.
According to Lacson, senators must remain circumspect in their public statements to maintain the integrity of the process. He noted that the public would closely scrutinize their actions once the trial begins.
He maintained that there is no reason to decide a case outside the basis of evidence, warning that senators would face public backlash if they voted to convict based on weak evidence or acquit in the face of strong evidence.