Starting VP impeachment proceedings doesn鈥檛 mean pushing trial 鈥� solons
VP Sara Duterte composite image from Inquirer, AP file photos
MANILA, Philippines — Calls for the Senate to start the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte does not mean going to the trial proper immediately, Assistant Majority Leader and Taguig City 2nd District Rep. Amparo Maria Zamora said on Tuesday.
In a press briefing, Zamora said there are things that the Senate can address that do not pertain to the trial itself, like administrative matters and other steps to prepare, which would allow the chamber to start the proceedings as soon as possible.
According to the lawmaker, starting with the preparations now will allow the Senate to start the trial after the 2025 midterm elections.
“I am of the understanding that this is a long process and we should have, we could start it now. We’re not saying that the trial will start now, that we start the process now, we don’t have to wait for the session to resume,” she said.
“They can already start up to, you know, approve or revise their rules of procedure for the impeachment,” she added.
Article continues after this advertisementZamora also said prosecutors can present their case already.
Article continues after this advertisement“Can we do it immediately after the elections? Much better … So I hope the defense panel can present their side after the elections,” she added.
Duterte was impeached after 215 House of Representatives members filed and verified a fourth impeachment complaint, citing several issues like alleged misuse of confidential funds lodged within her offices, threats to ranking officials including President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and conduct unbecoming of a Vice President.
READ: House impeaches VP Sara Duterte, fast-tracking transmittal to Senate
The trial, however, has yet to start because the articles of impeachment transmitted to the Senate were not brought to the plenary before the session adjourned.
Senate President Francis Escudero said the trial would start by July 30, with the new set of lawmakers sitting as senator-judges.
READ: Escudero bares proposed calendar of Sara Duterte impeachment trial
Members of the House’s prosecution team, like Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, however, raised concerns about the possibility of evidence crucial to the impeachment case being tampered with and witnesses being threatened if the trial continues to be delayed.
Earlier, Zamora and fellow Assistant Majority Leader and Tingog party-list Rep. Jude Acidre admitted that while they respect the Senate’s timetable for the impeachment trial, they are already sounding like a “broken record” when it comes to insisting that proceedings should start “forthwith” as the Constitution states.
Zamora and Acidre said starting the trial in June or July would be too late and would run contrary to the 1987 Constitution’s definition of “forthwith.”
Under the 1987 Constitution, a trial should start forthwith if at least one-third of all House members — in this case, 102 out of 306 — have signed and endorsed the petition.
With 215 lawmakers signing the impeachment complaint against Duterte, the House has gone past the one-third requirement.
