Speaking through lawyer Jose Midas Marquez, assistant court administrator and chief of the SC’s public information office (PIO), Puno said the decision of the High Court would only be on the validity of the President’s invocation of her executive privilege on the three questions which Neri refused to answer when he appeared before the Senate’s investigation of the scrapped National Broadband Network (NBN) project.

Based on the pleadings, the three questions in which Neri manifested that President Arroyo had invoked executive privilege in his behalf were: "(1) Did the President have any interest in the NBN project? (2) Did the President order Neri to prioritize the NBN? and, (3) Did she order the continuance of the project despite his allegations of bribery?"

According to Puno, the decision of the SC on Neri’s petition could be more comprehensive had the Senate accepted the proposed compromise that would have settled expeditiously the stalemate between the Senate and the Executive Department on the investigation of the NBN contract.

A stalemate ensued when Neri refused to testify further as he banked on the President’s executive privilege. The Senate had ordered Neri’s arrest but its implementation was held in abeyance by the SC when Neri elevated the issue before the High Court.

Under the proposed compromise aired during last Tuesday’s oral arguments, Neri would attend and testify in the Senate inquiry on the NBN project. Neri’s lawyers said the Cabinet secretary would attend but would not testify on the three questions that had earlier been posed on him and on which he had refused to answer.

On the part of the Senate, the senators would ask all questions on the NBN project and those questions which Neri would refuse to answer on the ground of executive privilege would have to be elevated to the SC on a supplemental petition to determine if they were covered by the executive privilege doctrine.

But Puno feared that the rejection by the Senate of the compromise would further delay the proceedings in its inquiry into the NBN contract.

He said the SC would have been able to come up with a more comprehensive parameters on the invocation of the President’s executive privilege had the Senate accepted the proposed compromise.

Earlier yesterday, Senate President Manny Villar met with Puno at the SC to convey the decision of the Senate rejecting the compromise proposal.

Explaining further, Puno said under the proposed compromise Neri would appear anew before the Senate investigation and would not be asked anymore the three questions where he already invoked executive privilege. But he could be asked by the Senators any other questions where he may still invoke executive privilege.

The senators may cite him for contempt for not answering the questions but cannot detain him as the questions would have to be elevated to the SC, which would in turn decide whether executive privilege was properly invoked on the said questions.

"The Court can definitely decide on the issue based on the three questions. There is no question to that. But, we already foresee that there will be subsequent inquiries on disputes on invocation of executive privilege so it would have been better if the Court was able to come up with a comprehensive decision based on, let’s say, 50 questions. That would have been enough. That is the opportunity we are missing," Puno said.

Yesterday, the SC came out with a resolution directing the parties to the case to submit their memoranda in 10 days.

The Senate was also directed to submit the minutes of all the meetings of the three committees held last January and February, notices of the joint meeting of the three committees, minute books of the three committees, and the composition of the three committees.

"Thereafter, with or without the respective memoranda the case shall be deemed submitted for resolution," the SC resolution added.

But Puno said the decision on the Neri case that was subjected to an oral argument would not put an end to the issue on the correct invocation of the President’s executive privilege because it is expected that Neri would invoke it again in questions that may be posed on him by the senators when he appears in the Senate inquiry.

"So there is a possibility that this issue will be brought before the Court again. Whereas, if they agreed with the proposal, the Court will decide based on all the questions where executive privilege invoked and not only based on three questions," Puno said through Marquez.

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Palace asks senators to reconsider their rejection of compromise

Genalyn D. Kabiling

Malacañang appealed yesterday to the Senate to reconsider accepting the Supreme Court’s "win-win solution" on the attendance of former socio-economic planning secretary and now Commission on Higher Education Chairman Romulo Neri in its inquiry into the allegedly anomalous national broadband network project.

Deputy Presidential Spokeswoman Lorelei Fajardo said the senators should exercise "statesmanship" and work within the framework of the SC proposal, which would allow Neri to resume his testimony but would be restricted in answering certain questions about his private conversations with President Arroyo about the aborted deal.

"We are saddened by the decision of the Senate but we hope the Senate will reconsider their position regarding the win-win solution proposed by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is the highest court of the land and this will help put a stop in the misunderstanding between the executive branch and legislative branch," she told reporters in the Palace.

Fajardo said the senators should take the lead from President Arroyo who on Wednesday cancelled Executive Order 464 which banned executive department officials from appearing in congressional hearings without her consent, on the request of the Catholic bishops.

"The President has responded positively by revoking EO 464. We trust that the Senate will exercise statesmanship and put the interest of the general public above anything else. The President has reached out and now we await the Senate’s move," she said.

Fajardo said the SC proposal, which would allow Neri to invoke executive privilege on three sensitive questions from the Senate, is "acceptable" on the part of Malacañang.

She warned that compelling Neri to reveal his private communications with the President about the broadband deal as demanded by the Senate could set a bad precedent.