VP Sara Duterte’s trial must go on — senators
Credit to Author: Jean Mangaluz| Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2025 18:35:00 +0800
MANILA, Philippines — Several senators have voiced their opposition to the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision that deemed the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte unconstitutional.
Opposition senator Risa Hontiveros said that she was dismayed by the decision, saying that the Court itself acknowledged that Duterte was not free from accountability
“All officials of the land have to answer for every Filipino, and the constitutional right of the people to hold their highest officials accountable must always prevail. The people have every right to demand answers. We will fight for this,” Hontiveros said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Hontiveros warned that this SC decision is setting a dangerous precedent that could hinder future efforts to hold a public official accountable.
Public office is a public trust, Hontoveros reiterated.
Hontiveros’ political ally Sen. Bam Aquino was in agreement, saying that the impeachment trial must continue.
“Nananawagan ako sa mga kapwa Senador na agad magsagawa ng caucus para talakayin ang desisyong binabalewala ang aming tungkulin sa Saligang Batas,” Aquino said.
(I call upon my fellow senators to have a caucus so we can explore this decision that disregards our duty in the Constitution.)
Several other senators offered more moderate responses, all insisting that the law must still be followed.
Sen. Tito Sotto, Sen. Francis Escudero’s main competition for the senate presidency, said that he would rather hear what the House of Representatives had to say.
“I was just told by a legal luminary that in this situation, we can disregard the SC decision. Let me study that advice,” he said.
Sen. Joel Villanueva, Escudero’s ally in the Senate, stood by the decision that the impeachment court made to ask the House to explain the articles (a move commonly viewed as an attempt to delay the impeachment process.)
“As an impeachment court and as a legislative body, we remain committed to following the Constitution and established procedures and will continue to do so,” Villanueva said.
Sen. Jinggoy Estrada said that he welcomed the SC’s decision, saying he expected that the Senate would accept it.
“As a co-equal branch of government, we must abide by the decision of the Supreme Court. Even in a political process like impeachment proceedings, we must adhere to established procedures and due process to ensure that our actions are neither arbitrary nor solely driven by political agendas,” Estrada said.
Meanwhile, Duterte’s allies in the Senate were quick to rejoice at the decision, including Sen. Imee Marcos, who said it was time to wrap it up and work.