There is a kind of dishonesty that does not always come in the form of an outright li It does not invent facts. It does not necessarily fabricate a story. It may even contain statements that are technically true. Its power lies somewhere else—in what is deliberately left unsaid. This is where lying by omission…
They have presented the SALNs, the SEC, the banks, the insurance companies, the BIR. Plenty of documents. But when these are ranged against testimonial evidence, they go nowehere. A witness is yet to speak with definitve voice and point the accusing finger that would dirty the hands of the vice president. The way Clarissa Ocampo…
Speaking of demeanor, it was San Juan Rep. and prosecutor Bel Zamora whose courtroom disposition was put in the spotlight. Later, it was the turn of Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte. I will not dignify any allusion to sexism simply because the subject was a woman and in another day is a man. They were not…
An ordinary citizen’s plea for the rule of law I am not a lawyer, nor a constitutional expert. I am simply an ordinary Filipino who believes that when political arguments become too loud and confusing, there is one fundamental document we should return to: the 1987 Constitution. The recent controversies surrounding the impeachment proceedings have…
Ang mga nagpanday ng ating 1987 Constitution ay pawang nagtapos ng ibat-ibang college courses and discipline at nagpatuloy upang maging ganap’ na abogado Karamihan sa kanila ay mga pantas at nagpakadalubhasa sa Batas – may mga law professors, dekano sa mga pamantasan ng abogasya, municipal at regional trial court judges, mga kilalang abogado at naging…
By Atty. Florante A. Zagada. I am saddened by the decision of the majority senators in their votes yesterday to allow them to vote to adjust the threshold votes below 16 based on the ATTENDANCE of members in deciding whether to convict or acquit VP Sara. As a lawyer and professor of law, I believe…
The Constitution is supposed to be the one document in our political life that stands above political convenience. That is why the controversy now unfolding in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte deserves more than partisan applause or condemnation. At the heart of the dispute is a simple constitutional phrase: “two-thirds of all…
Economic optimism must be matched by economic honesty There is nothing wrong with a President being optimistic about the country’s economy. Confidence matters. Investors need it, businesses need it, and ordinary Filipinos certainly need something to believe in. But optimism has one limitation: “It cannot change the numbers.” During his recent BRICS participation, President Ferdinand…
For more than two years, a large section of the ruling elite has joined forces to marginalize, if not erase, the Dutertes from the Philippine political map. The six-year presidency of Rodrigo Duterte was a nightmare for those privileged classes accustomed to entitlement. Once in a while, they may be at odds with one another….
In a democracy, there is one document that stands above presidents, senators, judges, political parties and every other government institution: the “Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines.” It is not a suggestion. It is not a guideline that government officials may adjust whenever circumstances become inconvenient. And it certainly cannot be rewritten simply because…
