Koko Pimentel To Ask Escudero over Decision to Postpone Duterte’s Impeachment Trial Proceedings

Statement of Sen. Koko Pimentel on Delay of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte’s Impeachment Trial Process

KOKO PIMENTEL – The Senator said he will ask Senate President Chiz Escudero over his decision to postpone the impeachment trial proceedings of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte.

Countless people are looking forward if the impeachment trial of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte will push through. The Vice President was impeached by the House of Representatives last February 5 after 2/3 of the lawmakers in the lower chamber approved her impeachment.

However, the recent pronouncement of Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero about the postponement of the proceedings in Duterte’s impeachment trial sparked speculations that it may not push through. According to the Senate Chief, the House and the upper chamber have several key measures that have to be passed before the end of the 19th Congress.

Initially, the reading of the articles of impeachment by the House of Representatives’ prosecution team was set on June 2. The next day, on June 3, the impeachment court will convene.

According to Escudero, the presentation of the articles of impeachment is moved from June 2 to June 11. The decision of the Senate Chief earned different reactions from the people including lawmakers in the upper and lower chambers of the legislative department.

Recently, Sen. Koko Pimentel who previously supported the immediate start of the impeachment trial of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte reacted to the move to postpone the schedule for the start of the proceedings. Based on a report on GMA News, he expressed that he will ask the Senate President about it.

“We have to ask SP his thought processes and how come he is now changing his own ‘impeachment calendar’ issued months ago,” he said.

Sen. Koko Pimentel further expressed that the legislative agenda of the Congress should give way to the proceedings of the impeachment trial of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte. Based on the report, he claimed that there is a provision that gives more weight to the impeachment proceedings in case a legislative agenda and an impeachment proceedings are both happening.

“Meron kasi section or provision in our impeachment rules that gives the directive, that should there be both legislative and impeachment matters, the legislative agenda should give way to the impeachment proceedings,” the former Senate President said.

Aside from the speculations that the impeachment trial may not push through, there are also rumors that Pres. Bongbong Marcos who previously claimed that he is open to reconcile with the Duterte family has a directive on the matter. Malacañang claimed that Marcos Jr. wants Duterte’s impeachment trial to push through.