The role of the House Committee on Justice is to weigh the evidence, not to gather evidence to plug the gaping loopholes in the Gadon impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has tasked the committee to “continue gathering evidence” because the Chief Justice refuses to resign.

The committee’s duty is to determine probable cause principally based on the complaint and evidence adduced by Gadon, and not to build up the case for Gadon.

The committee must act as an impartial investigator, not an intrepid sleuth.

While Gadon is grinning at the sidelines, the committee members are the ones requesting for the appearance of invited witnesses to whom they instantly direct questions, instead of allowing Gadon to first initiate the direct examination.

After denying the Chief Justice’s right to have her counsel cross-examine the complainant and his witnesses, and further barring Representatives who are non-members of the committee from participating in the committee’s deliberation which is contrary to established parliamentary practice, the Chair and supermajority members are now actively monopolizing the proceedings in the so-called “impeachment committee”.

EDCEL C. LAGMAN