Prosecutors ask impeachment court to ‘police’ spread of fake news
MANILA – House prosecution panel spokesperson Robert Ace Barbers urged the Senate impeachment court on Thursday to address the proliferation of misleading content or fake news allegedly shared by senator-judges during the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
During a radio interview, Barbers stated that Senate leadership and the impeachment court must ensure their members maintain the impartiality and integrity of the trial.
“Well, itong issue na ito, siyempre, ang panawagan natin ay sa Presiding Officer at sa buong Impeachment Court na i-police nila ang kanilang hanay. Sila mismo ang maging ‘police’ sa kanilang hanay. Tingnan nila kung sino ang lumalabas sa linya o sino ang nagva-violate sa ating rules (On this issue, our call is for the Presiding Officer and the whole impeachment court to police their own ranks. They should look into who is crossing the line or who is violating the rules),” the former Surigao del Norte lawmaker said.
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The spliced video
Barbers made the appeal after the circulation of a Facebook post published under the account of Senator Pia Cayetano, which, according to the House prosecution panel, contained a “spliced” video of the oral arguments between Cayetano and prosecution panel member Rep. Chel Diokno.
The prosecution panel alleged that the edited video misrepresented the exchange by making it appear that the prosecution was engaged in a “fishing expedition” when it sought the issuance of subpoenas for the Vice President’s bank accounts and other financial records.
While condemning the circulation of the video, Barbers said the prosecution panel remains confident that the public witnessed the actual proceedings and understands what transpired during the hearing.
“Sa prosecution side, sa aking paniwala, walang epekto. Pero sa integrity ng mga senator-judges, may malaking question. Kapag ang isang senator-judge ay nagpapakita ng bias o pagpanig sa isang side habang ito’y nililitis, parang may violation iyon sa kanilang rules (In my opinion, there was no effect on the side of the prosecution. But on the integrity of the senator-judges, there is a big question. If a senator-judge shows bias or takes a side while on trial, it seems that it is a violation of their rules),” he said.
Barbers noted that the issue goes beyond the prosecution and instead concerns the credibility of the Senate as an impeachment court.
“Dinig na dinig ng ating mga kababayan kung ano ang totoong nangyari. We do not expect that coming from a senator-judge ay ilalabas ang ganitong fake at spliced video. Kaya nga ang panawagan namin, dahil alam naman nila kung ano ang totoong nangyari, kung maaari sana ay sila na mismo ang mag-rectify nito (The public heard what really transpired. We don’t expect that coming from a senator-judge, this fake and spliced video. That is why our call to them, since they know what really happened, is for them to rectify this),” he said.
“The House prosecution panel reiterated its appeal for the Senate impeachment court to take the necessary steps to safeguard the integrity, impartiality, and credibility of the impeachment proceedings by addressing the alleged dissemination of manipulated content related to the trial.” (PNA)
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