Senator Imee Marcos

House Assistant Majority Leader Tingog Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre has expressed apprehension over the Senate's apparent unwillingness to accept Malacañang's stance of executive privilege in the hearing about former president Rodrigo Duterte's arrest by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

This, after Senator Imee Marcos slammed the absence of top officials in the Committee on Foreign Relations' hearing on the controversial topic last Thursday, April 3. The lady senator chairs the committee.

“Mahirap naman po na sila naman sa pagkakataon ngayon ang ibabalewala o ‘di kaya e mamasamain ang pag-invoke ng isang co-equal branch ng executive privilege (It would be bad if they now ignore or are offended by a co-equal branch's invoking of executive privilege)," Acidre said in a statement over the weekend.

Just days before the scheduled hearing of the Marcos panel, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin invoked executive privilege and informed the Senate that the invited officials wouldn't be able to attend.

Acidre said this was a perfectly legitimate reason. 

“Nirerespeto po natin ‘yan, hindi lang ho ngayong panahon ni Presidente Marcos ngunit sa mga nauna na hong presidente. Kahit dating ang pangulong Duterte, nagkaroon na ng pagkakataon dati na pinigilan niya ang kanyang mga Gabinete, miyembro ng Gabinete at mga opisyales ng ehekutibo na humarap sa Senado,” he said.

(We respect that, not just now during the time of President Marcos, but also during the time of past presidents. Even during the time of president Duterte, there was an instance when he prohibited Cabinet members executive officials from going to the Senate.)

The House leader says that the invocation of this privilege is neither new nor controversial and has precedent in previous administrations. 

“Yan po ay nararapat at ginagalang ho natin ang pananaw ng ating ehekutibo ng ating Presidente at Malacañang (That's what's proper and we respect this view of the executive of the President and Malacañang),” he added.

Acidre also pointed to the House’s own practice of respecting inter-parliamentary courtesy. 

“Sana ho hindi makalimot ang Senado na kahit sa House ho, ginalang din ho natin ang interparliamentary courtesy sa mga kasamahan po sa Senado na nasasangkot sana katulad po ni Senator Bato, sa kadahilanan ho ng war on drugs, siya po ang PNP chief,” he said.

(I hope the Senate doesn't forget that even the House respected the interparliamentary courtesy toward our Senate colleagues like Senator Bato, who was involved in the war on drugs in his capacity as former Philippine National Police chief.)

“Maganda sana kung humarap din siya sa quad-comm at sa mga pagdinig sa House of Representatives. Pero sa kadahilanan ho ng parliamentary inter-chamber courtesy, hindi ho natin in-insist po ‘yon at ginalang po natin ang kanyang katayuan bilang isang senador,” he added.

(It would have been nice had he attended the hearings of the quad-comm in the House of Representatives. But be because of parliamentary inter-chamber courtesy, we didn't insist on it and we respected his standing as a senator. 

The inquiry centers on Duterte’s arrest and detention overseas in relation to his crimes against humanity charge filed before the ICC in the Netherlands. The absence of Cabinet officials has stirred debate over the scope and limits of executive privilege.

Acidre maintained that co-equal branches of government must respect each other’s constitutional boundaries.