The anticipated impeachment trial of Vice-president Sara Duterte-Carpio suddenly hangs in the balance as the Senate further postponed the proceedings and many legal luminaries commenting it may not happen at all.
This despite an overwhelming desire by Filipinos to see the Vice-president address the charges and clear her name of the allegations. A poll by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) this May showed 68 percent of Filipinos have expressed the view that Duterte-Carpio should “definitely” address the charges while 20 percent said she “probably should.” Only seven percent believe Duterte should avoid the issue.
A separate poll made by Pulse Asia done May 6-9 however indicated that 50 percent of Filipinos disagree with the filing of the impeachment complaint against the feisty daughter of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
At the Upper House where the impeachment trial will happen, Senate President Francis Escudero announced last week that the prosecution panel’s scheduled presentation at the Senate would be moved to June 11 instead of June 2, citing the tackling of “priority legislative measures before the 19th Congress adjourns” as the reason for the postponement.
The Senate chief claimed he consulted some senators on the postponement.
Asked this week if there was a possibility that the Senate would not even convene as an impeachment court, Escudero said it was possible. However, he said that “I doubt that that will happen.”
At the House of Representatives, Deputy Minority Leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said that Escudero’s decision to move the prosecution’s presentation from June 2 to June 11 helped fan rumors of a possible dismissal of the impeachment case without conducting any trial.
“Every delay in the impeachment trial raises serious doubts about the commitment to hold Vice-president Sara Duterte accountable for the alleged anomalies in the disbursement of intelligence funds,” she said. Castro was among those who initiated the impeachment case against the Vice-president.
Castro called on the Senate to “uphold its constitutional responsibility and ensure that the impeachment trial proceeds without any further delays or attempts to dilute its purpose.” She said the “Filipino people deserve to know the truth, and they deserve justice.”
‘Functionally dismissed’
Sen. Francis Tolentino meanwhile said the impending impeachment trial of Duterte-Carpio will be “functionally dismissed” if the present Senate could not conclude the proceedings before ending its term on June 30.
An outgoing senator who lost his re-election bid last May under the administration party, Tolentino stressed the jurisdiction over impeachment is only exclusive to the 19th Congress which received the complaint, citing previous rulings by the Supreme Court (SC).
“SC rulings in ‘Neri vs. Senate’ and ‘Balag vs. Senate,’ all legislative matters terminate with the expiration of Congress. This principle is affirmed internationally. Unfinished businesses do not carry over into a new congress,” said Tolentino, a constitutional lawyer, during a plenary session of the Senate this week.
At The Hague where she celebrated her 47th birthday on May 31, the Vice-president said she wanted the trial to proceed.
“I told them (her legal team) that I truly want a trial because I want a bloodbath,” she said.
But the Vice-president said she did not believe that the trial will be fair.
“We have always said that the impeachment is a political persecution. It is the administration going after me after I resigned from the Cabinet,” she said.
“And if it’s a persecution, it’s some sort of crucifixion against me. And so, when there’s a crucifixion, there’s blood. So, it’s a bloodbath. My bloodbath. So, I’m just sad that many people refuse to understand the context wherein I give statements,” she also said.
