A ranking congressman has criticized what he described as a “dangerous and transparent attempt” by some senators to use the revived Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearings on the flood control projects mess as a way to derail the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

TINGOG Party-list Rep. Jude Acidre said on Tuesday, May 26 that the abrupt push by the new Senate majority bloc to immediately resume the high-profile probe —particularly those linking selected House members and impeachment prosecutors to alleged flood control anomalies—raises serious questions about timing, motive, and institutional propriety.

“Napakalinaw ng nangyayari. Habang papalapit ang impeachment trial, biglang may pagmamadali na buhayin ang mga Senate hearings na ang malinaw na epekto ay ilihis ang atensyon ng publiko mula sa impeachment proceedings laban sa Bise Presidente,” Acidre said.

(It is very clear what is happening. As the impeachment trial approaches, there is suddenly a rush to revive Senate hearings whose obvious effect is to divert public attention from the impeachment proceedings against the Vice President.)

“Hindi tuloy maiwasan ng taumbayan na isipin na may koordinadong political demolition job laban sa House prosecutors at sa institusyong nagsampa ng impeachment complaint,” he added.

(The people cannot help but think that there is a coordinated political demolition job against the House prosecutors and the institution that filed the impeachment complaint.)

Acidre said the public deserves to know whether the sudden Senate leadership realignment last May 11 was partly driven by a strategy to weaken the momentum of the impeachment process and reshape the political narrative before trial formally begins.

“The sequence of events is deeply disturbing," noted the party-list solon and chairman of the House Committee on Higher and Technical Education.

According to Acidre, no public official is above investigation, including members of the House of Representatives. However, he said investigations must not be weaponized to influence an ongoing constitutional process.

“Walang problema sa imbestigasyon kung patas, objective, at hindi politically timed. Pero kung ang layunin ay pahinain ang kredibilidad ng House prosecutors bago pa man magsimula ang paglilitis, ibang usapan na iyon,” he stressed.

(There is no problem with investigations if they are fair, objective, and not politically timed. But if the aim is to weaken the credibility of the House prosecutors before the trial even begins, that is another matter.)

Acidre also cautioned against turning the Senate into a venue for political retaliation or partisan rehabilitation.

“The Senate impeachment court is not supposed to be converted into a political war room. Ang mandato ng Senado sa impeachment ay maging patas na hukuman, hindi campaign headquarters ng kahit sinong political faction,” he said.

(The Senate’s mandate in impeachment is to be a fair court, not the campaign headquarters of any political faction.)

The House leader said the Filipino people are intelligent enough to recognize when institutions are being used to manufacture diversionary narratives.

“Hindi dapat ginagamit ang kapangyarihan ng Senado para gumawa ng smoke screen. Ang tunay na issue rito ay impeachment trial ng isang mataas na opisyal ng bansa. Iyan ang constitutional duty na inaasahan ng taumbayan,” Acidre said.

(The Senate’s power should not be used to create a smoke screen. The real issue here is the impeachment trial of a high official of the country. That is the constitutional duty expected by the people.)

He stressed that the House prosecutors remain focused on presenting evidence and proving the articles of impeachment before the Senate impeachment court.