Arguing over side issues bogged down a congressional hearing yesterday on impeachment complaints against Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
"We are quarreling about things we are not supposed to quarrel about. We have not started actually, we are still quibbling about the agenda," committee Vice Chairman Arthur Defensor told ABS-CBN television during a break.
Opposition legislators questioned the impartiality of the House Justice Committee chairman, Simeon Datumanong -- Arroyo's former justice secretary -- who is presiding over the proceedings.
Several lawmakers demanded that Datumanong step aside, citing his statements on a TV talk show that wiretapped recordings -- the basis for the complaints -- were inadmissible as evidence, and that the three impeachment cases filed against Arroyo violated a rule against more than one within a year.
With lawmakers vying loudly to be allowed to speak, Datumanong flatly refused to yield.
"You've been appointed twice by the same president that is the subject of these hearings," opposition Representative Jacinto Paras said, referring to Datumanong's former positions in Arroyo's Cabinet.
Other lawmakers questioned the agenda. Representative Rodante Marcoleta insisted that the House committee had no jurisdiction to rule over which of three complaints against Arroyo should be heard, saying the Supreme Court should decide.
Marcoleta sponsored the first complaint, which the opposition says is the weakest. Opposition lawmakers filed amendments to bolster the charges against Arroyo, which include violating the Constitution, betraying public trust, corruption and bribery.
But Arroyo allies have argued that the amendments should not be considered, calling them new complaints that violate the one-year ban.
Opposition leaders have urged Arroyo to resign instead of going through a painful trial by the Senate.
Key evidence in the case includes alleged wiretapped conversations between Arroyo and an election official about ways to ensure a million-vote victory.
Arroyo has apologized for a "lapse in judgment" in calling an election official before results were announced, but has denied influencing the vote and refused to step down.
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