THE Senate should no longer delay Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial and must proceed “forthwith” as mandated by the Constitution, two House lawmakers asserted on Monday.
1-Rider Party-list Rep. Rodge Gutierrez, a member of the 11-man House Prosecution Panel, and House Assistant Majority Leader and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong made the statement in the wake of a survey by Tangere showing that 73 percent of Filipinos would want the Vice President to face an impeachment trial.
“I think it’s a true reflection na lang po no siguro…just really speaks about the trial itself at gusto ng taong bayan ay magkaroon na tayo ng trial,” Gutierrez told a news conference.
“The issues are very clear, the questions are clear. And I think all we need now already (are) answers and the proper venue that they have always thought. As mentioned before, these issues hindi po yan bago sa atin,” he said.
Gutierrez said some of the impeachment charges against the Vice President were raised in numerous House hearings, which the impeached official had refused to attend, claiming these were not the proper venue to explain her side.
“Hindi po the proper venue, (she) chose not to take the oath. All of these (were) roundabout ways, only to say po na parang hindi po ‘yung proper venue. Ngayon po, we have the opportunity and impeachment court is the proper venue. Seventy three percent of Filipino’s agree that this is the venue. Dapat na po siyang tumayo dito and to answer these allegations and to finally put to rest all of these allegations,” he said.
He said as a member of the prosecution team, he believes in the impeachment case against VP Duterte.
“I believe na there was, that we can establish guilt. But for most of the Filipino people, whether we succeed in establishing guilt or not, at least to clear the air already po, stand (trial) and be answerable for this,” he added.
He pointed out that as of now, the Vice President’s impeachment case is “in limbo.”
Adiong said the Tangere survey meant that “in the bar of public opinion…the impeachment trial has to proceed” forthwith as called for under the Constitution.
The Mindanao lawmaker called attention to the views expressed by members of the 1986 Constitutional Commission that wrote the Constitution – that the Vice President’s Senate trial should not be unreasonably delayed and should start “forthwith.”
“As what the framers of the Constitutions say, there’s a difference between how do we quantify, how we define in actual timeline, ‘yung word na ‘forthwith.’ I think the framers of the Constitution, as supported by this 73-percent survey (result) say that impeachment trial is so important it has to proceed without any delay,” he said.
“So nagsasabi lang ‘yan, it only validates what the Constitution says na ‘forthwith’ without any delay. But again we still maintain our position that the House of Representatives, with our prosecutors, (would follow) the timeline that would be set by the Senate once they convert the institution itself into an impeachment court,” Adiong said.
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