When will the Duterte impeachment trial start? Senate to vote on June 11

National

WILL the Senate formally convene as an impeachment court to try Vice President Sara Duterte? This will be known when senators vote on June 11 to decide if the trial could start before the 19th Congress ends.

Various opinions have been offered regarding jurisdictional issues but Senate President Chiz Escudero insisted that only the plenary can decide whether or not the impeachment may cross over to the 20th Congress.

He said that even if the 19th Congress votes to proceed with the impeachment proceedings, the 20th may still decide not to, pointing out that“previous Congresses cannot bind subsequent Congresses.”

“For example, the 19th Congress may say that the impeachment will cross over, but the 20th Congress decides otherwise and they will dismiss it, so it depends. In the end, you have to understand that in Congress, plenary is supreme,” Escudero said in a Philstar report.

If the Senate plenary votes to convene as an impeachment court on the same day, the reading of the Articles of Impeachment, oath-taking of senator-judges and the issuing of the summons against Duterte will be done on the same day, Escudero said.

Time is a critical element in the process.

Under the rules, Duterte would be given 10 days to respond to the summons.

If the Senate issues summons on June 11, Duterte has until the 21st to respond, leaving House prosecutors more or less nine days before their authority expires.

“Come June 30, prosecutors or their private prosecutors no longer have authority, so the trial will be on hold and we will wait for the resumption or opening of the new Congress (on July 28),” Escudero said.

After June 30, Escudero said there would no longer be a pre-trial because of the expiration of terms but House prosecutors may be given leeway to submit written interrogatories, which is part of pre-trial.

Escudero expressed confidence that if the 20th Congress votes to continue the impeachment proceedings, voting to convict or acquit Duterte by October would still be possible.