Belmonte: Impeachment case vs. SC Justice Del Castillo will not be elevated to Senate

Published June 1, 2012 5:00pm

House Speaker Feliciano “Sonny” Belmonte Jr. on Friday said the impeachment complaint against Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo, a close friend of former Chief Justice Renato Corona, will no longer be elevated to the Senate. “We will not elevate it to the Senate, but may lack time to act on it next week before we adjourn," Belmonte told reporters.

He said the decision of the House of Representatives was based on the recommendation of Iloilo Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., head of the House committee on justice and the lead prosecutor in the five-month impeachment trial of Corona. Voting 20 to 3 on May 29, the senator-judges found Corona guilty of betrayal of public trust for failing to disclose all his wealth in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN). Plagiarized ruling Del Castillo had faced an impeachment complaint for betrayal of public trust over his alleged plagiarized ruling in the case of Filipino comfort women.

On December 14 last year, 70 elderly women, led by Isabelita Vinuya of the "Malaya Lolas" group of comfort women, and 11 lawmakers filed the impeachment complaint against Del Castillo.

On February 21 this year, the House justice panel voted 38 to 10, finding probable cause to impeach Castillo. The plenary was given 60 session days whether to affirm or reject the recommendation of the House committee on justice.

However, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile earlier said Del Castillo's case was a “mere civil damage suit and not an impeachable case." Lack of time

Meanwhile, Quezon Rep. Lorenzo “Erin” Tañada III also said the impeachment case against Del Castillo would no longer be brought to the Senate.

“There is no time (for it) because we go on sine die next week. But it will be discussed by the House leadership,” Tañada said.

On the other hand, House Majority Leader and Mandaluyong City representative Neptali Gonzales II, said: “That’s very far from our minds at the moment. We decide after the break,” said Gonzales who was also chairman of the house committee on rules.

On June 9, congress will go on a break and will resume sessions on July 23 for the start of the third regular session of the 15th Congress, the same day when the President Benigno Aquino III delivers the State of the Nation Address (SONA). - Andrei Medina, VVP, GMA News

Tags: supremecourt, delcastillo, coronaimpeachment