Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Representative Rufus Rodriguez expressed his intense "dismay" on Wednesday, March 25, after lawyers for Vice President Sara Duterte submitted a letter questioning the House Committee on Justice's jurisdiction over the ongoing impeachment proceedings.

During the hearing, Rodriguez did not hold back in his criticism of the legal strategy employed by the Vice President’s camp, particularly their claim that the House of Representatives has no authority to conduct what the defense termed a "mini-trial."

'Erroneous and Baseless'

Rodriguez pointed out that the defense’s argument—which cites the Senate’s sole power to try and decide impeachment cases—misinterprets the Constitution. He clarified that while the Senate conducts the actual trial, the House is mandated to hold hearings to determine probable cause.

"Any law student would know that precisely our committee has the power to hear on finding the probable cause," Rodriguez said. "I am really totally dismayed by this letter... they are the ones contravening the Constitution."

The veteran lawmaker described the documents submitted by the six-lawyer defense team as a "scrap of paper" and an "insult to the committee," asserting that the panel is not conducting a trial on the merits but is performing its constitutional duty.

Rodriguez moved for the committee to issue a formal order—rather than a mere reply—to "traverse" the allegations made by Duterte's counsel. He argued that the Vice President is being given a chance to exercise due process, yet her legal team chooses to challenge the very foundation of the proceedings.

"In this case, they are saying that they do not recognize our jurisdiction," Rodriguez noted. "We are telling them that please come and recognize it because your premises here are totally unfounded and baseless."

Meanwhile, the motion sparked a brief debate among committee members regarding how to handle the defense’s stance. Rep. Chel Diokno expressed reservations about using the word "order," warning that it might be "twisted" to make it appear the committee is overstepping its bounds and acting like a court.

Whereas, Rep. Leila de Lima suggested a more dismissive approach, stating, "We need not dignify that letter... we can ignore that because it’s wrong. The position raised there is erroneous."

Despite the disagreement regarding the terminology, the sentiment remained clear: the committee maintains its full jurisdiction to proceed with the impeachment inquiry.

Rodriguez emphasized that despite the "erroneous" claims, the Vice President and her counsel remain invited to the next hearing to address the specific grounds of the complaints filed against her.