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Wha! Miriam's memorable impeachment moments
By KIMBERLY JANE TAN, GMA News
Despite her frequent absences from the Corona trial, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago holds a lock on the most number of memorable moments during the proceedings.
When she returned to the Senate last January 24 after being sidelined with hypertension, she greeted the public with this classic message on the floor of the impeachment court:
"I'm suffering from terminal boredom, both from watching television of the impeachment trial and from staying at home. Thanks to all of you who sent me well-wishes and prayed for my health. I'm ready to rumble."
"I'm tired of hearing your voice... Answer yes or no!"
"The Constitution allows the Senate to promulgate its own rules of procedure, that has been repeated in this instance. This is the end of this colloquy. How dare you raise questions about my authority? Be careful because I might request my colleagues to inhibit you and disqualify you from appearing here."
"You cannot heckle me. You cannot engage in what the law calls a colloquy with me. You cannot engage in a discussion or in an argumentation with me. I'm the judge, I preside here."
— Santiago to private prosecutor Arthur Lim on whether the House prosecutors are accusing Corona of being guilty under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (January 26)
— Santiago after House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II asked her to accord "respect" to prosecutor lawmakers (January 29).
"I am aghast that a party in litigation and the sub-mental cretins who are my enemies have the gall to demand the power to control the personality of the judge. To educate the non-educable, it is the judge who controls the proceedings."
— Santiago to people supposedly staging personal attacks on her as a senator-judge (January 31).
"This morning... my blood pressure was galactic at 140/100. At that rate, if I attend the impeachment hearings, I will soon be pushing daisies at a memorial park near you."
"I refuse to succumb to illness, because I don’t want to give my political enemies the pleasure of dancing on my grave, chortling like contented snakes."
— Santiago on missing the impeachment trial again due to hypertension (February 6).
“I will give you a grade of 3, I passed you but I warned you."
— Santiago lecturing chief prosecutor Niel Tupas Jr. about the "irrelevant" portions of the impeachment complaint (February 13).
"Duty my foot. It is not your duty, it is your liability. That is a disgrace to the judicial system."
— Santiago to prosecutor Rep. Rodolfo Fariñas on saying it was their "duty" to submit to the Senate bank documents provided to them by an anonymous source (February 14).
“Perhaps some people should read the law more carefully, particularly if they are entrusted to make the law."
— Santiago praising Philippine Savings Bank Katipunan branch manager Anabelle Tiongson for reporting to her superiors that Quezon City Rep. Jorge "Bolet" Banal approached her to ask for help in authenticating copies of Corona’s supposed bank records (February 20).
"Hindi sila nag-aaral, kumbaga sa estudyante, dapat paluin ang puwet nila ng ruler dahil hindi sila gumagawa ng homework."
"Pati personalidad namin ngayon kokontrolin nila? Ganyan ang personalidad ko since bata ako ... [Kung] mga judges pala pwede kontrolin ng abogado... maski kagaguhan ginagawa sa harap [papayagan mo], bakit ka pa naging judge? Magpakatuta ka na lang."
— Santiago to lawmakers in the prosecution team who said they were offended by the way some senator-judges had berated them during the impeachment trial (February 23).
"[Sabi ninyo] panalo na kami, mayroon na kaming proof beyond reasonable doubt. Good grief! That is contempt of court. Ang yayabang ng mga nagsasalita ng ganyan, gago naman. Ay my goodness! Kagaguhan is a ground for contempt."
"This is a travesty. Una sabi ninyo malakas na malakas ebidensya namin kasi eight ang krimen niya, eight ang articles of impeachment namin. Bilangin mo walo yan pagkatapos ngayon dalawang buwan palang wala na, tatlo na lang sa lima. Kasi tama na yun, panalo na kami. Wha! I request the secretary to record in our journal that I said wha!"
“When I heard that you are dropping charges, I feel like creeping back to bed and adopting a fetal position."
— Santiago to prosecutors on dropping the remaining Articles of Impeachment (February 29).
"Is it going to tax your IQs so much that you need until Friday to do this? Susmaryosep where are your neurons? Your brains are very, very dark."
— Santiago to prosecutors after they asked for time to submit their formal offer of evidence to the Senate (February 29).
“Kayong UP students kayo, dapat i-kick out immediately. If you are true actual persons, you do not deserve to be in UP."
“My goodness! The symbol of UP is standing there, naked. If I were the oblation, I will immediately throw away my fig leaf. Eh kagaguhan nalang pala tinuturo sa UP kung ganiyan.”
— Santiago to students of the University of the Philippines who conducted a survey where the majority of the respondents said they no longer trust Chief Justice Corona (February 29)
Santiago does not appear worried about what is said about her, even the statement by former President Corazon Aquino's spiritual adviser Fr. Catalino Arevalo that she was "worthy of the fires of hell" for insulting the prosecution panel.
“Under Vatican 2, there is no hell; but even if there is, there is nobody there," she said.
— RSJ/HS, GMA News
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