Sereno’s lawyers to House justice panel: Stick to legal definition of ‘culpable violation of Consti’

Lawyers of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Tuesday urged members of the House Committee on Justice to avoid deviating from the legal definition of "culpable violation of the Constitution."

The lawyers made the appeal after AKO BICOL party-list Representative Rodel Batocabe argued that for him, "culpable" in Filipino means "pambabastos."

At the resumption of the House panel hearing on the impeachment complaint against Sereno, Batocabe asked Misamis Occidental Rep. Henry Oaminal, who was presiding over the proceeding at the time, to clarify what "culpable" meant in Filipino.

Batocabe, however, ended up answering his own question: "Pagbabalasubas, pambabastos ng ating Konstitusyon."

"May mga sinasabi ang Korte Suprema kung ano ang culpable. But in an impeachment proceeding, wala pong makakapagsabi sa atin kung ano culpable kundi tayo lang na mga kinatawan ng taumbayan," he said.

"Ang taumbayan lang ang makakapagsabi kung ano ang pambabastos sa Konstitusyon," he added.

Batocabe clarified, however, that it was only his opinion to define "culpable" as such.

But Sereno's lawyers, in an e-mailed commentary, said the House panel should not deviate from the legal definition of "culpable violation of the Constitution."

"The Committee and its members should have a uniform standard on what constitutes a 'Culpable violation of the Constitution,'" they said.

"The 'conscience' of the members cannot be the defining standard of the Committee in determining if there is indeed violation of the Constitution," they added.

The lawyers said "culpable violation of the Constitution" means the "willful and intentional" violation of the Constitution.

"It implies deliberate intent and a degree of perversity. Hence, it does not include violations committed unintentionally, or involuntarily, or in good faith through honest mistake," they explained.

The Constitution, the lawyers said, provides six grounds for impeachment: culpable violation of the Constitution, treason, bribery, graft and corruption, other high crimes or betrayal of public trust — all of which share a common characteristic of being a "severe ground" for impeachment.

"The grounds for impeachment do not include trivial causes. Nor do they include acts done in good faith," the lawyers said.

The House justice panel is deliberating on the impeachment case against Sereno, in an attempt to the determine probable cause on lawyer Lorenzo "Larry" Gadon's complaint. — MDM, GMA News