Manila 6th District Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. on Tuesday said it remains uncertain whether senators facing legal troubles would trade their votes to convict Vice President Sara Duterte for relief from their own cases.
Abante made the statement amid speculation that some senator-judges could be vulnerable to political deals because of the legal cases they are facing.
“It remains to be seen,” Abante said in an interview with Bilyonaryo News Channel’s At The Forefront with Atty. Karen Jimeno when asked if senators with legal problems could negotiate a conviction vote in exchange for having their cases go away.
Abante said the impeachment trial should not be reduced to political maneuvering and urged the senator-judges to focus on the evidence before them.
He also said Duterte should appear at the proceedings and personally face the allegations against her.
“That’s the reason why, number one, that the VP should appear and be there. Number two, that all of the senator judges would appreciate the evidence presented,” Abante said.
“Sabi ko nga, it’s beyond politics. I mean, huwag nating tingnan ng tao dito. Tingnan natin kung talagang dapat impeach ang VP,” he added.
Asked if he was confident that the senator-judges would decide solely on the evidence despite the speculation over their pending legal cases, Abante again declined to make a prediction.
“It remains to be seen,” he said.
Abante said senators who are legitimately facing criminal charges should leave their cases to the courts instead of seeking political accommodation.
“Kung totoo naman dapat silang kasuhan, then the courts should be the ones to do it,” he said.
He said the public would eventually see if lawmakers acted according to their duties or allowed personal considerations to affect their decisions.
“Kung totoo, hindi naman ibig sabihin how shall it go, whatever it is, na wala naman kasalanan ito kakasuhan mo,” Abante said.
“ I mean, nakikita ng taong bayan, oh iba pala yung nangyari, oh ito pala ang isang senator natin, gagawa pa rin for a long time,” he added.#