The Philippine House Committee on Justice Wednesday suspended deliberations starting on Wednesday on the three impeachment complaints against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo due to complaints from lawmakers, a local TV reported.

According to GMA TV news, Committee chairman Simeon Datumanong announced to reschedule the hearing to Monday after non-committee members objected not to be allowed to ask questions during the deliberations.

Ruled by the House, the committee will have to decide first on which of the three impeachment charges, which were filed separately by lawyer Oliver Lozano, by the opposition bloc, and by lawyer Jose Rizalino Lopez, will be tackled before determining whether the complaint is sufficient in form and then in substance.

If any impeachment complaint is found sufficient in both of form and substance, the justice committee will recommend it to the House, which will decide whether to either uphold or dismiss the report.

The committee can only start its preliminary investigation after the plenary decides to uphold its report.

Datumanong said that the committee would strictly follow the rules to ensure a fair and transparent impeachment process.

He also said the decision of his committee would be a result of "the force of arguments and not merely on the strength of numbers. "

President Arroyo has been accused of betrayal of public trust, bribery, graft and corruption, and culpable violation of the Constitution, on the allegations that she had cheated in the 2004 presidential elections and that her family members had benefited from illegal gambling.

Source: Xinhua