18-5: The ongoing impeachment battle

For days, the nation was glued to the coverage of the Senate session, and with bated breath, the public waited wondered if the impeachment court would eventually be convened to try and decide the impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte.

Tensions ran high most of the time.

Senate President Chiz Escudero repeatedly hinted that he could not be rushed into convening the impeachment court, shifting the blame to the Lower House for submitting the impeachment complaint at the last minute.

There was also a debate on whether the impeachment can cross over to the twentieth Congress from the nineteenth. Escudero believes it can. Senator Francis Tolentino disagrees, and for this reason, he proposed a very short trial schedule --one that could conclude before the next Congress. Tolentino's proposed trial dates failed to generate enthusiasm among the senators.

After intense debates, Escudero scheduled the following activities: his own oath-taking as presiding officer (June 9), the oath-taking of senators as senator-judges (June 10), and the convening of the impeachment court (June 11). However, the minority could not wait any longer. Senator Koko Pimentel, stood up multiple times to insist that the impeachment court be convened. Pimentel is hard to beat in the floor debates, given his familiarity with the rules and his legal acumen.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, although not a lawyer, appeared well-prepared. She cited law and jurisprudence effectively. But what she excelled at even more was complementing Pimentel's technical expertise with discourse apparently intended to energize her political base. Theirs is an ideal tandem.

Everyone thought the minority had the upper hand. Eventually, the senator-judges took their oaths. But the battle was far from over. Masterfully, Senator Bato dela Rosa used his privilege speech to move for the dismissal of the impeachment complaint against VP Sara. Days earlier, he had boasted that he already had the numbers to make such a move. Indeed, one would assume he would not have filed such a motion without the support to back it.

But the senator's motion was a double-edged sword. It was risky in the sense that it would halt all discussions about the impeachment, and deny both the prosecution and the defense their day in court to present evidence. Many believed that such an outright dismissal could trigger huge demonstrations --reminiscent of the impeachment trial of former president Joseph Estrada-- where senator-judges voted not to open an envelope that allegedly contained evidence against the president (it later turned out that the envelope contained nothing).

In fact, the pro-Duterte camp was divided on the matter of outright dismissal. Those against the trial believed their energy would be better spent on other matters, arguing that a trial would only provide a platform for Sara’s critics to grandstand in preparation for the 2028 presidential election. Those who wanted the trial to proceed are confident it would prove Sara's innocence. More than that, they seemed eager for political bloodbath (figuratively speaking) --a full-blown confrontation that Sara herself had promised.

Senator Peter Alan Cayetano appeared to sense that Dela Rosa's motion lacked sufficient support among the senator-judges. I also guess that an outright dismissal does not enjoy public backing.

Cayetano rose to amend the motion. He moved that the impeachment complaint be returned to the Lower House. All hell broke loose. A more intense debate ensued. The minority argued that the motion was tantamount to killing the impeachment complaint, a ploy, a deception.

When the smoke cleared, the motion prevailed. Eighteen senators-judges voted in favor, five opposed.

But what we have witnessed this week and the past months is not the entire war. It is basic truth in life that early celebrations are ill-advised. The war is not yet over it’s far from over.