PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:00:00) Yes, Senator-Judge Alan.
SENATOR-JUDGE ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:00:01) With the permission of former Senate President Sotto, let me clarify. Two minutes to ask a clarificatory question. You’re referring to the 10 minutes, one hour, when there’s a motion already.
PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:00:12) Yes.
SENATOR-JUDGE ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:00:13) So that assumes, dear Senator Judges, that we don’t have a consensus after the caucus, and then we’re going to debate it.
(0:00:22) Yes, that’s why it won’t last that long. I mean, assuming we all have questions for two minutes, so it’s 48 minutes, give or take. Then the 10 minutes and one hour is if we have a debate whether or not to grant…
PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:00:38) If I may correct, Senator Judge Alan, the two minutes, if at all, applies to evidentiary issues and questions that we can throw to either party or the witness. But in this case after an elongated oral presentation by both sides, both in chief and on rebuttal, we should just listen.
(0:01:00) And then go into caucus and decide if you can agree. If not, then we go out and debate for a maximum of two hours. One hour on each side.
SENATOR-JUDGE ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:01:08) Each side, but those are different subpoenas. Different for the BIR and the AMLA. To your point, former Senate President Sotto, that’s times two pa.
PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:01:19) No, no, no. Senator Judge Alan, as I said earlier, since the memoranda was submitted by the parties jointly on these twin motions, we will be deciding on it jointly as well.
SENATOR-JUDGE ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:01:32) But would it be possible that we all agree, let’s say, on the AMLA but not agree on the BIR or vice versa, or we both agree on both? Because there are different laws governing AMLA and BIR. Anyway, that’s why we’ll have a caucus.
SENATOR-JUDGE SOTTO:
(0:01:47) Yes. May I suggest, Mr. Presiding Officer, and, of course, my esteemed colleague, may I suggest that we decide on how long each senator would be given after we caucus instead of setting it now. Let’s set the prosecution and the defense.
(0:02:11) And then we’ll go into caucus, and then we decide in caucus how long will we be giving each member if we so decide to still debate here instead of getting into a consensus in the caucus.
PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:02:26) Senator Judge Sotto, I completely agree. However, the presiding officer was merely citing what’s written in our rules right now. We can, of course, change it by agreeing amongst ourselves to lower it or increase it. Hopefully, not in the direction of increasing it.
SENATOR-JUDGE ALAN PETER CAYETANO:
(0:02:40) Hopefully, after the caucus, we will have a Win-Chiz solution.
PRESIDING SENATOR-JUDGE ESCUDERO:
(0:02:45) Hahaha. Thank you, Senator-Judge Alan. Any other points? Senator Judge Pangilinan is recognized.
