House Deputy Speaker Zambales 1st Rep. Jay Khonghun rebuked members of the Senate majority bloc for supposedly being poor role models to the Filipino youth.

This was mainly due to the majority senators' proposal to allow remote participation and voting for senators who may be absent or facing detention while Vice President Sara Duterte's Senate impeachment trial is underway.

“Anong klaseng halimbawa po ang ipinapakita natin sa kabataan kung puwedeng hindi ka sumipot sa trabaho, hindi ka humarap sa tungkulin, pero puwede ka pa ring bumoto at makilahok sa napakahalagang proseso ng impeachment?” Khonghun said on Thursday, May 28.

(What kind of example are we showing the youth if you can skip work, avoid your duty, yet still vote and take part in such an important impeachment process?)

“Puwede bang tuloy ang suweldo kahit absent basta malakas ka sa boss? Iyan ang tanong ngayon ng ordinaryong Pilipino (Can salaries continue even if absent, as long as you are favored by the boss? That is the question ordinary Filipinos are asking)," added the Zambales lawmaker, as he hammered home his point.

Khonghun made the statement following heated debates in the Senate over proposals to expand rules on remote participation in sessions and possibly even impeachment proceedings.

The issue triggered a walkout by several senators from the minority bloc amid concerns that the move may benefit senators facing possible detention or legal troubles.

According to Khonghun, impeachment is not an ordinary legislative discussion but a constitutional duty requiring full attention, accountability, and physical presence from senator-judges.

“Kapag impeachment trial, hindi ito Zoom meeting. Hindi ito online class na puwedeng mag-login lang tapos okay na (An impeachment trial is not a Zoom meeting. It is not an online class where you can just log in and be fine)," he argued.

“The Filipino people expect senator-judges to personally hear witnesses, examine evidence, observe credibility, and perform their constitutional responsibilities with seriousness and integrity,” Khonghun said as he echoed the stand of other House members who have spoken on the issue.

The House leader warned that relaxing participation rules for convenience or political accommodation could weaken public confidence not only in the impeachment process but in democratic institutions themselves.

“Sa kabataan natin, malinaw dapat ang mensahe: public office is responsibility, not privilege. Kapag may tungkulin ka, dapat humarap ka. Hindi puwedeng selective ang accountability."

(For our youth, the message must be clear: public office is responsibility, not privilege. If you have a duty, you must face it. Accountability cannot be selective.)

He said many young Filipinos already feel frustrated by perceived double standards in government.

“Ordinaryong estudyante, empleyado, manggagawa—kapag absent, may consequence. Pero kapag makapangyarihan, puwedeng gumawa ng espesyal na rules? Delikado pong precedent iyan,” Khonghun said.

(Ordinary students, employees, workers—when absent, there are consequences. But when powerful, can special rules be made? That is a dangerous precedent.)

The deputy speaker clarified that his statement is not directed at any individual senator but at the broader institutional implications of changing long-standing rules during a highly sensitive constitutional process.

“Mas malaki ito kaysa politika. Ang nakataya rito ay tiwala ng publiko sa ating mga institusyon at ang values na ipinapasa natin sa susunod na henerasyon,” Khonghun underscored.

(This is bigger than politics. At stake here is public trust in our institutions and the values we pass on to the next generation.)