03 AND 02 JANUARY 2001
BEFORE THE PHILIPPINE SENATE
(SITTING AS THE IMPEACHMENT COURT)
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MS. BANAL. As stockholder, Your Honor?
SEN. GUINGONA. Yes, as an initial stockholder, incorporator, officer.
MS. BANAL. Maybe other two corporations.
SEN. GUINGONA. Two other corporations?
MS. BANAL. Yes.
SEN. GUINGONA. Would you name them?
MS. BANAL. I would rather not name them, Your Honor.
SEN. GUINGONA. You would rather not.
MS. BANAL. Because they are clients of the firm.
SEN. GUINGONA. And in those two other corporations, the names of the emerging owners became known to you?
MS. BANAL. Well, yes, Your Honor.
SEN. GUINGONA. Yes. But in these two corporations at issue, namely, Pio Holdings and Alexie Corporation, the owners for whom you fronted in the beginning, you never met?
MS. BANAL. No, Your Honor.
SEN. GUINGONA. And you became an officer of this corpora-tion, Pio Holdings, without having met the beneficial or real owner?
MS. BANAL. That's correct, Your Honor.
SEN. GUINGONA. And in spite of the fact that you asked Atty. Serapio as to the reason why you were elected secretary of the same, you never met the real or beneficial owner?
MS. BANAL. No, Your Honor.
SEN. GUINGONA. Thank you, Mr. President.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. Thank you.
The honorable Senator-Judge Roco.
SEN. ROCO. Yes, Mr. Chief Justice.
You're the daughter of .... What is the name of your father?
MS. BANAL. George Banal.
SEN. ROCO. George Banal, yes. He is an old friend.
We in San Beda Law, we were taught that Law is a noble profession; it is not a business. Am I right to assume that you in UP Law were taught the same thing?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. Yes, I am sure, I am sure. We also were taught what was written in the Law School of UP. What is this written engraved in snow, in stone?
MS. BANAL. The business of a Law School is not to teach law but it is to teach law in the grand manner.
SEN. ROCO. To teach law in the grand manner. And it is....We as lawyers, because we are brothers and sisters in the profession, we should always be motivated by a sense of idealism because we are the ministers of the law. Could this be correct?
MS. BANAL. That's correct, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. And so, when you transfer from a higher-paying job to a lower-paying job, it is not necessarily an erroneous career decision, would this be correct?
MS. BANAL. That's correct, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. In fact, it could be motivated by a sense of idealism?
MS. BANAL. That's correct, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. Correct. And it's the women lawyers like you who should be motivated by such sense of idealism. Would this be correct?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. Yes. I thought that should be elicited because I was surprised to learn of the usual career pattern of going from lower-paying jobs to higher-paying jobs. Now, it does not mean, of course, that the former law firm that you came from did not give idealism, is this correct?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. Nor does it mean that in joining the Romulo Law Office you are now partaking in a greater sense of idealism, correct?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. It just happened to be that since Law is not a business but a noble profession, the question of compensation is not very material.
MS. BANAL. That's true, Your Honor.
SEN. ROCO. I thought you had all the right answers. Thank you.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. The honorable Senator-Judge Cayetano; after that, the honorable Senate President; and then the witness would be excused.
POINT OF ORDER
SEN. DEFENSOR SANTIAGO. Mr. Chief Justice, I beg the indulgence of Senator-Judge Cayetano. This is a point of order.
[It was at this point that Senator-Judge Miriam Defensor-Santiago went into her complaint against the line of questioning pursued by Senator-Judge's Roco and proceeded to move for the exclusion of three people in the gallery for purportedly looking at her in a provocative manner]
THE SENATE PRESIDENT. May I request for a suspension
of the proceedings for at least 20 minutes.
x x x x x
REP. APOSTOL. Mr. Chief Justice, may I request that the witness be excused.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. No, no. The witness is not necessarily excused. But if she has to answer a call of nature, she should be accompanied by somebody.
Compaņera Banal, you may be accompanied by a lady Page.
It was 3:02 p.m
THE TRIAL WAS RESUMED AT 4:12 P.M.
THE SERGEANT AT ARMS. Please all rise for the arrival of the Honorable Senate President-Judge Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr. and the Honorable Presiding Officer Chief Justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. The trial is now resumed.
x x x x x
We will now continue with the trial proper.
The honorable Senator-Judge Renato Cayetano had made a reservation. His Honor is now recognized.
SEN. CAYETANO. Thank you, Mr. Chief Justice.
Atty. Banal, some short questions. Can you tell us, if you know, who chose the names of these two corporations?
MS. BANAL. As I know, the partners themselves chose the names.
SEN. CAYETANO. The partners themselves. Which partners?
MS. BANAL. I don't know exactly which partners but that was what we know then.
SEN. CAYETANO. Would that include Mr. Serapio?
MS. BANAL. I wouldn't know, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. Do you know who prepared the forms of the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws which you signed?
MS. BANAL. I believe it was prepared by Atty. de los Reyes.
SEN. CAYETANO. By whom?
MS. BANAL. By Atty. de los Reyes.
SEN. CAYETANO. Is that the same person you said who work for Atty. Serapio?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. I recall that you mentioned that when you billed your time--and I'm quite familiar with this because your former partners were my former colleagues--that you put "care of Atty. Serapio," correct?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. So, as far as your billing hour is concerned, it was Mr. Serapio who was your client, am I correct?
MS. BANAL. I'm not sure, Your Honor, because well, that was... I believe there was no payment for that specific ...
SEN. CAYETANO. No, hindi 'yan ang tanong ko sa iyo.
MS. BANAL. Okay.
SEN. CAYETANO. Doon sa billing mo, "care of," sabi mo, "Serapio"?
MS. BANAL. Yes, yes.
SEN. CAYETANO. So, who, as far as you know, was your client?
MS. BANAL. I didn't know who the client was.
SEN. CAYETANO. Except that you said it was "care of
Mr. Serapio"?
MS. BANAL. Yes. Because if one of the partners would give us work which would not pertain to the firm, we would write the name of the partner.
SEN. CAYETANO. Yeah. I'm quite familiar with that. Now, let me call your attention to your Secretary's Certificates of 19 October. You certified here that there was a meeting of the Board?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. Was this an actual meeting or a paper meeting?
MS. BANAL. It was a paper meeting.
SEN. CAYETANO. So the members of the Board did not really meet?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. And who prepared the certificate?
MS. BANAL. It was given also to me by Atty. Michael de los Reyes.
SEN. CAYETANO. That is the same guy who work for Mr. Serapio?
MS. BANAL. Yes, Your Honor.
SEN. CAYETANO. The Majority Leader is looking at me.
THE SENATE PRESIDENT. You still have time.
SEN. CAYETANO. That's all, Atty. Banal. Thank you.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. Thank you, Your Honor.
And finally, the honorable Senate President-Judge Pimentel.
THE SENATE PRESIDENT. Because of the caucus, Mr. Chief Justice, I waive my right to question the witness.
THE PRESIDING OFFICER. Thank you very much, Your Honor.
So the witness is now excused. Thank you Compaņera Banal.
Next witness for the Prosecution.
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