Senator Nancy Binay filed an ethics complaint against Senator Alan Peter Cayetano after the latter called her crazy and a gossipmonger. What happens now?

According to Senate Rules section 93, “acts and language which offend a senator or any public institution shall be deemed unparliamentary.”

The hearing on the new Senate building on Wednesday, July 3, got too personal between the two senators, with Cayetano accusing Binay of influencing media interviews to favor her own narrative. In that hearing, Cayetano resorted to name-calling, saying that Binay’s name is Lourdes, and not “Marites” (Filipino slang term for gossipmonger.)

Binay’s full name is Maria Lourdes Nancy Binay.

In an interview on Tuesday, July 9, Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino, who chairs the Senate ethics committee, said that Binay’s complaint would have to go through a series of assessments before his committee can act on it.

“As per ethics committee rules, we will conduct preliminary determination whether the complaint is sufficient in form and substance to warrant an investigation,” he said.

In a separate press briefing, Tolentino said that a conciliatory process will be done before the ethics panel acts on the complaint. “I would want that conciliatory process done before the presence of all the committee members,” he said, adding that this will be done in an executive session.

Tolentino also said that most Senate disputes were resolved behind closed-door sessions.

The senator said that they still lack one member in the ethics committee because he assumed the position a day before Congress went on a break. The members of the panel are Senators Raffy Tulfo, Mark Villar, Risa Hontiveros, Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Jinggoy Estrada (ex officio), and Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III (ex officio).

The new member will be elected in a plenary session. The regular session of the Senate resumes on July 22.

Section 97 of the Senate Rules states that “upon the recommendation of the Committee on Ethics and Privileges, the Senate may punish any member for disorderly behavior and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of the entire membership, suspend or expel a member. A penalty of suspension shall not exceed 60 calendar days.”

“This authority is granted by the Constitution not merely to punish an individual Member, but to protect the institutional integrity of the Senate, its proceedings, and its reputation,” according to the Senate rules.

The Senate also said that at least five members of Congress have been sanctioned, since 1994. They are: Senator Jose Alejandrino, Senate President Jose Avelino, Congressman Sergio Osmena Jr., Senator Juan Ponce Enrile, and Senator Heherson Alvarez. – Rappler.com