Padilla to file ethics complaint vs Pangilinan

Tensions rose at the Senate on Tuesday as senators continued to discuss the International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant of arrest against Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.

During the plenary session, Senator Robinhood Padilla made a manifestation, asking if senators are allowed to shout at their colleagues.

This developed after the senators engaged in a heated exchange while discussing the ICC arrest warrant.

"Gusto ko lang ireklamo si Senator Pangilinan sa pagsigaw. Meron po ba sa rules natin na sinasabi na pwede mong sigawan ang kapwa mo senador?" Padilla said.

(I want to complain about how Senator Pangilinan shouted earlier. Are there rules that senators can shout at their colleagues?)

Pangilinan tried to explain but the Senate suspended the session and later adjourned.

In an interview, Padilla said he would file a complaint against Pangilinan before the Senate Ethics Committee should the latter refused to apologize on the floor.

He also refused a handshake from Pangilinan during the suspension.

“Hindi ko matatanggap ‘yung natural ang sigawan. Not me. Sila kung gusto nila magsigawan sila. Hindi ako kasama dun,” the senator said.

(I cannot accept their reason it was natural for senators to shout at each other. Not me. They can shout as much as they want but exclude me from it.)

“Mag-apologize siya. Kailangan sa plenary niya gawin, kasi sa plenary niya ko sinigawan eh,” he added

(He has to apologize to me on the floor. He shouted at me while in session.)

Sought for comment, Pangilinan said he will wait and respond to the ethics complaint once it is filed. He added that it is the first time that he will encounter an ethics complaint in the Senate because a senator shouted or raised his voice at a colleague.

“Yung pagtataas ng boses sa mainit na debate ay hindi man kagustuhan at hindi naiiwasan at malimit na nangyayari sa plenaryo. Kung laban sa ethics yun, marami na sanang mga senador ang sinampahan at pinarusahan. Zero cases,” he said in a Facebook post.

(Raising one’s voice during a heated debate is not intentional and cannot be avoided, and often happens in plenary. If that is against ethics, then many senators would have faced cases and sanctions. Zero cases.)

“Kung sakali man, sasagutin ko ng kontra-reklamo sa Ethics Committee sa kanyang paglabag sa parliamentary rules at pagiging out of order at sa kawalan ng proper decorum, ang pagbabanta sa akin, pananakot at paninindak sa akin sa plenary session kanina habang naka recess,” Pangilinan added.

(If ever, I will answer with a counter-complaint before the Ethics Committee about the violation of parliamentary rules and being out of order, and the lack of proper decorum, the threat and intimidation against me during the break in the plenary session.)

During their exchange, Pangilinan said the manifestations on the issuance of the ICC arrest warrant should be referred and discussed at the Senate Committee on Rules to give way for the discussion of other issues.

However, Padilla interjected, leading to Pangilinan to raise his voice and say: “I still have the floor.”

“For the record Mr. President, we voted against Senate Resolution No. 44. So to say that we have this resolution, yes, but there are senators who voted against it. Therefore, it is not necessarily our agreement with the points being raised by the good Senator from Camarines Norte,” Pangilinan said.

On Monday, Dela Rosa appeared at the Senate for the first time in six months amid claims the ICC issued a warrant of arrest against him over his links to the war on illegal drugs of ex-President Rodrigo Duterte.

CCTV footage showed the senator dashing towards the Plenary Hall to evade NBI agents who were wearing civilian clothes.

Senators later voted to cite them in contempt and place them under the custody of the Senate.

Following a meeting with the NBI, the agents were placed under NBI custody. — JMA, GMA News