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MANILA, Philippines — Senators are set to vote next week on whether or not to proceed with the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte following a closed-door caucus on the recent Supreme Court (SC) decision, legislative priorities and committee chairmanships.
During yesterday’s plenary session, Senate President Francis Escudero announced that a consensus was reached during the all-member caucus to give all senators time to study the SC’s 97-page decision.
“For the record, it was agreed in caucus that the matter will be decided upon by the Senate on Aug. 6, 2025 when we open session on that date in order to afford ample and sufficient time to the members to study the 97-page SC decision, excluding the concurring and separate opinions filed by five or six additional magistrates of the SC,” Escudero said.
During a press conference before the session, Escudero bared that he was of the opinion that the impeachment court should no longer convene as the SC had already declared the Articles of Impeachment void from the start and that the Senate no longer has jurisdiction over the case.
Despite this, he said the matter would need to be decided through a vote.
Senate Minority Leader Vicente Sotto III confirmed that some senators suggested acting on it immediately while others requested more time to review the decision.
Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, aligned with the minority, said the delay was meant to allow a more informed debate in plenary, especially for non-lawyer members.
He acknowledged that some senators had considered moving to dismiss the complaint outright on Monday but agreed to wait.
“They gave in to the request of our colleagues… they all considered the request of Aug. 6 instead,” he said.
Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva described the caucus as a “very fruitful discussion,” where senators expressed various views on the issue.
He said while members had differing advocacies, everyone remained respectful and united in ensuring the Senate fulfills its constitutional duty.
In addition to impeachment deliberations, the Senate also finalized its legislative calendar and streamlined its rules for bills left pending from the previous Congress.
Deadline
The House prosecution panel has until Aug. 11 to file the motion for reconsideration before the SC following the latter’s decision declaring the Articles of Impeachment unconstitutional, House spokesperson Princess Abante said yesterday.
“According to records, I think the House has until Aug. 10 to file its motion for reconsideration. But I understand Aug. 10 falls on a Sunday, so the deadline would be Aug. 11,” Abante said in an interview.
She also said it is up to the Senate to do whatever they want to do with the impeachment case after the SC’s decision.
“But again, the decision is not yet final. The House will file a motion for reconsideration and until such time it is still up to the Senate to perform their duties as mandated by the Constitution,” Abante said.
“We are hopeful that the decision of the Supreme Court will change,” she added.
Meanwhile, Akbayan party-list on Monday called on senators to uphold their constitutional mandate and proceed with the impeachment trial of Duterte.
In a protest at the Senate, Akbayan joined Tindig Pilipinas and other civil society groups to press lawmakers to honor their oath as senator-judges and reject what they described as an “attack on democratic accountability.”
“To our senators: the Constitution gives you the sole power to try and decide impeachment cases. Do not allow this moment to pass without defending that mandate,” Akbayan president Rafaela David said.
Akbayan criticized the high court’s decision as a “dangerous distortion” of the principle of separation of powers and warned that it may embolden Duterte allies in the Senate to push for an outright dismissal of the complaint.
“Any attempt to dismiss the impeachment complaint against VP Sara is an attempt to silence the truth,” David added. “Our senators must not be complicit in the Dutertes’ scheme to rob the people of justice.”
The group urged the Senate to assert its independence and support the House of Representatives in its plan to file a motion for reconsideration before the SC.
Similarly, militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) said if there would be no impeachment trial, then there really is a grand conspiracy to shield Duterte from accountability.
“The anti-corruption stance of Marcos, the Senate and other legislators would be further exposed as a sham if Duterte’s impeachment is shelved,” Bayan secretary general Raymond Palatino said in a statement.
Nothing to hide?
Meanwhile, Duterte’s defense team denied allegations that she is afraid of evidences against her coming out during the impeachment trial.
Michael Poa, spokesman of Duterte’s 16-member defense team, maintained that his client is ready to face the impeachment court.
“Definitely not (afraid). In fact, we were ready to go to trial. In fact, the Vice President, if I may repeat, she really wants to answer, face on, head on, all the allegations against her,” Poa told “Unang Hirit” on GMA.
Poa added that the defense team has been preparing since February.
“We can say that we were ready. So, on our part, we’re still monitoring the situation right now. Let us see the developments and if there will be another impeachment, for example, after the subject of the one-year bar, we will be ready to also face those allegations,” Poa noted.
In a separate radio interview, Poa said the Vice President has been informed of the SC decision last Friday.
“She acknowledged my message and thanked the defense team,” he said. — Jose Rodel Clapano, Bella Cariaso, Mark Ernest Villeza, Emmanuel Tupas
