The Inquirer headline warns of an ongoing move in the House of Representatives to amend the Constitution through a constituent assembly which could lead to the indefinite extension of the Arroyo administration’s reign. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s eldest son, Pampanga Rep. Juan Miguel “Mikey” Arroyo, is supposedly leading a signature drive, which has already secured between 120 and 150 signatures on a resolution calling on the Senate and the House to amend the Constitution by voting jointly and not separately. The anti-charter change Senate will be outvoted by the Arroyo-controlled Lower House. Read the rest of this entry »

Or maybe squashed may be a more apt term. Like a bug.

The House committee on justice voted to dismiss the intervention complaint advanced by Manolo Quezon and a group of bloggers which sought to add the memorandum of agreement on ancestral domain between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) as one of the grounds for impeachment of President Arroyo. The House supposedly lacked jurisdiction to take cognizance of another impeachment complaint since there had already been an earlier one filed by Joey De Vencia et. al. based on other grounds. The committee brushed aside the argument that this was not a new impeachment suit, but merely one which seeks to consolidate an issue with should properly be included in the acts constituting impeachable offenses committed by GMA. Read the rest of this entry »

The House of Representatives Committee on Justice has determined that the impeachment complaint filed against President Arroyo, the 4th of her stay in office, is sufficient in form though its substance has yet to be debated upon. But the impeachment suit faces sure defeat before a House dominated by Arroyo allies. The best the opposition can try for is that the issues raised be given a chance to be properly ventilated and brought to the attention of the public. But even this faint hope is sure to be thwarted. Read the rest of this entry »