ANTHONY H. Aguon, Gov. Ralph DLG Torres’s lawyer in the impeachment proceedings in the Senate, has filed a motion to dismiss the articles of impeachment.
The Office of the Senate Clerk officially received Aguon’s motion on behalf of the governor at 4:08 p.m. on Monday, March 28, 2022.
Aguon said the articles of impeachment are constitutionally defective as the House of Representatives acted in excess of its constitutional mandate.
He said the articles of impeachment seek a greater penalty than is constitutionally allowed, adding that impeachment is not a felony which would preclude a person from running for office.
The articles of impeachment’s constitutional defects cannot be remedied, he added.
Aguon said the House did not comply with the House rules in adopting the articles of impeachment, specifically the special House committee.
The special House committee, he added, failed to follow notice requirements when it adopted its report and forwarded it to the full House.
Aguon said the special House committee also failed to comply with the Open Government Act when it adopted its report and forwarded it to the full House.
He said the inquiry and investigation of the special House committee did not comply with House rules, and the committee report was also non-compliant with House rules.
As for the House Committee on Judiciary and Governmental Operations, Aguon said it acted in excess of its jurisdiction and in contravention to House rules.
The subject areas involved in the JGO’s investigation of the governor’s public expenditures, he said, were outside of the JGO’s jurisdiction as they involved subject matters allocated to other standing committees.
Aguon said the articles of impeachment violate Article II, Section 15 of the CNMI Constitution, the Government Ethics Act, and House Rule XI, Section 7.
Article II, Section 15 of the CNMI Constitution states: “A member of the legislature who has a financial or personal interest in a bill before the legislature shall disclose that interest and may not debate on or vote on the bill.”
House Rule XI, Section 7 reiterates this conflict of interest laid out in the CNMI Constitution.
Aguon said Rep. Tina M. Sablan’s involvement in the JGO hearings and the special House committee meetings are a conflict of interest given that she is running against Governor Torres in the upcoming gubernatorial election.
He said Rep. Tina Sablan initiated the JGO hearings by requesting to include the minority report of the 21st Legislature in the records of the 22nd Legislature, and to expeditiously refer the report to the JGO.
Sablan unlawfully participated and voted in the JGO hearings, in the special House committee, and in the full House, Aguon said.
Sablan is unlawfully generating “free media attention for her run as governor through the impeachment process,” he said, adding that she “stands to unlawfully gain a significant salary increase” if elected governor.
Torres was impeached by the House of Representatives on Jan. 12, 2022 by a vote of 15 to 4 with 1 abstention, on allegations of felonies of theft, corruption and neglect of duty. He has denied the charges.
At least six of the nine senators must vote to convict in order to remove the governor from office. Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios would then succeed him.
Anthony H. Aguon
