MANILA: What happens if Vice President Sara Duterte (pic) refuses to show up at her impeachment trial?
Resolution No. 39, or the Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials, dated March 23, 2011, which governs impeachment proceedings in the Senate, says that an impeached official’s absence at the Senate impeachment trial would not delay the proceedings.
Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano himself said the resolution would continue to apply during Duterte’s impeachment trial, along with the supplementary application of the Rules of the Senate and the revised Rules of Court when applicable.
According to the rules under Senate Resolution No. 39, the trial will continue despite an impeached official’s absence or refusal to answer, with a “not guilty” plea entered on his or her behalf.
“If the person impeached, after service, shall fail to appear, either in person or by counsel, on the day so fixed or, appearing, shall fail to file his answer to such articles of impeachment, the trial shall proceed nevertheless as upon a plea of not guilty,” said part of the resolution.
“If a plea of guilty shall be entered, judgment may be entered thereon without further proceedings,” it added.
The Senate officially convened as an impeachment court on Monday afternoon to try the Vice President, ordering her to file her answer to the articles of impeachment within 10 calendar days from receipt of the summons.
The Senate sergeant-at-arms was directed to serve the written summons, along with a copy of the articles of impeachment, on Duterte, who was also directed to appear before the Senate session hall upon notice.
Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro, lead prosecutor of the 11-person House prosecution team, said it would be “disadvantageous” for Duterte if she or her legal team skipped the impeachment trial, warning that their absence could tilt the case toward conviction.
Evidence of alleged wrongdoing left “unrebutted and uncontroverted” could sway senator‑judges toward a guilty verdict, since it would be difficult to justify an acquittal under such circumstances, she noted.
“It will be disadvantageous for her if she will not be presenting her evidence, because there’s already evidence presented by the complainant and the same evidence will be presented before the impeachment court,” Luistro told a media briefing.
”It’s very hard to conceive how you will consider the defense of the respondent VP if not a single evidence is presented,” she added.
Luistro also said the Senate should continue holding Duterte’s impeachment trial even if she resigns from office, because the trial carries two “principal penalties”—removal from office and perpetual disqualification from holding public office—and Duterte’s resignation would only render the first irrelevant.
“We need to continue the trial for the senator-judges to be able to determine whether they will impose as well the penalty of perpetual disqualification,” Luistro said.
For Bicol Saro party list Rep. Terry Ridon, the impeachment trial is the “final opportunity of the Vice President to provide a most complete defense.”
“Our expectation would be that they will raise the previous jurisdictional questions or constitutional questions in their answer, but also provide a more substantial reply,” he said.
On the other hand, Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima said the Senate must act with impartiality in Duterte’s impeachment trial—to hear the case free of bias and regardless of political leanings, in accordance with its own impeachment guidelines.
“They are actually expected to exhibit political neutrality,” she said. “They have to fulfill their duty without unfair discrimination and without regard to political color or affiliation.”
“This is due process for Vice President Sara,” she added in Filipino. “So this is her chance. It is time for her to face and answer the accusations against her.”
Lawyer Michael Poa, spokesperson for Duterte’s defense team, earlier said his client would only personally answer the allegations against her in an “appropriate forum,” which he said was the Senate.
In a message to reporters on Monday (May 18) following the issuance of a summons to Duterte, Poa said they “will comply and file the appropriate response in accordance with the Constitution and applicable rules.”
According to Senate Resolution No. 39, the trial of all the articles of impeachment should be completed before the senators vote on the final question on whether the impeachment should be sustained.
“On the final question whether the impeachment is sustained, the vote shall be taken on each article of impeachment separately; and if the impeachment shall not, upon any of the articles presented, be sustained by the votes of two-thirds of all the Members, a judgment of acquittal shall be entered,” it said.
The rules also stated that while the Senate is holding an impeachment trial, its doors shall be open to the public at all times.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson, now one of the judges in the impeachment trial, has called on the public to remain vigilant.
“May the public vigilance remain unabated,” he said in a post on X, where he also described the convening of the impeachment court as a “breath of fresh air” following the tension-filled events in the Senate last week.
Lacson was referring to the shooting incident involving members of the Senate sergeant-at-arms and, supposedly, National Bureau of Investigation agents on Wednesday night, before Sen. Ronald 'Bato' dela Rosa sneaked out of the premises before dawn Thursday.
Dela Rosa had earlier holed himself up in the Senate, where he was given “protective custody” to avoid arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court over his alleged role in former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs.
“The stark contrast between the smell of gunpowder last week and the breath of fresh air in the Senate yesterday was evident when we convened as an impeachment court after all the parliamentary procedures were strictly followed,” said Lacson.
The convening of the impeachment court came a week after the House impeached Duterte, with 257 House lawmakers voting in favor of adopting House Resolution No. 989, which contains Committee Report No. 261 and the articles of impeachment. - Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN
