Ex-CJ Sereno says Duterte can’t terminate VFA sans Senate concurrence

Former Supreme Court (SC) chief justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Friday said President Rodrigo Duterte cannot terminate the Philippines-United States Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) on his own.

The Philippines has notified the US of its intention to terminate the 1999 agreement, which governs the conduct of US personnel holding military exercises here.

Duterte threatened an end to the VFA after the US cancelled the visa of Senator Ronald dela Rosa, his ally and former police chief who used to lead his deadly war on drugs.

"Ang terminasyon ng isang malakihan at malalimang pag-uugnayan ay hindi dapat nasa isang tao lamang... at lalong lalo na hindi dahil lamang sa visa ng isa niyang kaibigan," Sereno said on the sidelines of a forum at the De La Salle University in Manila.

She said Senate concurrence is needed before the country could terminate the VFA, calling treaty-making a "joint power" of the president and the Senate that neither could exercise alone.

"If a president does this, then basically you negate the treaty-making powers of the Senate by a president capriciously just ending what the Senate has decided on," she told reporters.

Sereno was ousted in 2018 due to her alleged failure to file some mandatory asset declarations. Instead of impeachment, she was removed from office through a quo warranto petition filed by Solicitor General Jose Calida.

Senator Panfilo Lacson has said there were talks in the Senate to file a petition before the SC to clarify their role in the termination of bilateral treaties.

This role is an issue in a pending SC case regarding the Philippines' withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which Duterte also set into motion without approval by the Senate.

Section 21, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution says treaties or international agreements are valid and effective when concurred in by at least 2/3 of the Senate.

In the ICC case, government lawyers argued the Constitution is silent on whether the Senate's approval is also needed in withdrawals from treaties. —NB, GMA News