Ni Vanne Elaine P. Terrazola
Nagpahayag ng pagkabahala ang mga miyembro ng Senate minority bloc kaugnay ng planong magsampa ng ethics complaint laban kay Senator Antonio Trillanes IV.
Ayon sa mga miyembro ng Liberal Party (LP), “[they] view with serious concern” ang banta ni Senator Richard Gordon na maghahain ng ethics complaint laban kay Trillanes matapos silang magkainitan sa pagdinig ng Blue Ribbon Committee sa paglusot ng P6.4-bilyon shabu sa Bureau of Customs (BoC) noong Mayo.
Para sa minorya sa Senado, isa itong “intimidation” sa oposisyon.
“We cannot help but ask our colleagues in the majority if this is an attempt to harass and intimidate a colleague in the opposition. There appears to be a pattern of filing of ethics complaints against senators who do not subscribe to the views of those aligned with the administration,” saad sa joint statement nila na inilabas ng tanggapan ni Sen. Francis Pangilinan, pangulo ng LP.
Bukod kina Trillanes at Pangilinan, miyembro rin ng minority bloc sina Senators Bam Aquino, Leila De Lima, Franklin Drilon, at Risa Hontiveros, pawang mula sa LP.
Binanggit ng partido ang mga kasong isinampa laban kay de Lima noong nakaraang taon na naging dahilan upang mapatalsik siya bilang chairperson ng Senate committee on justice and human rights, sa kasagsagan ng pagdinig ng komite sa umano’y extrajudicial killings sa pagpapatupad ng administrasyong Duterte sa kampanya kontra droga.
“Now we have this threat of a case filed against Senator Sonny that came after his line of questioning in the hearing led to linking Paolo Duterte to smuggling in the BoC. Is this ethics case meant to silence the opposition in the Senate and the critics of the administration?” anang minority bloc.
Nanindigan naman ang Senate minority bloc sa suporta kay Trillanes, at idinagdag na sila “will oppose efforts to stifle dissent and silence the opposition that are essential in a vibrant democracy.”
“We urge our colleagues in the majority to rethink their position as regards this threat. Even assuming for the sake of argument that this is not the intention of the Senate majority, the result of a decision of either a suspension or dismissal will have the same effect of weakening the opposition in particular and our democracy as a whole where dissent must be respected,” anila.
Samantala, sinabi naman ni Senator Grace Poe, miyembro ng Senate majority, na hindi na kailangang humantong pa sa paghahain ng ethics complaint ang naging hindi pagkakasundo nina Gordon at Trillanes, at hinimok ang dalawa na mag-usap na lang.
