The impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte will push through on July 6 as the Senate works to complete all preliminary matters and logistical preparations this week.
In a radio interview Sunday, Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian said the Senate impeachment court is expected to issue its pre-trial order on Monday. The document will contain the matters discussed during the pre-trial conference and will be submitted to both the prosecution and defense panels for comment.
“Pipilitin natin matapos lahat ng preliminaries. Tomorrow, mag-iisyu ng pre-trial order,” the Senate leader said.
He said both sides will be given three days to comment on the pre-trial order before the Senate makes final preparations for the trial proper.
Gatchalian said the physical setup of the Senate, including the plenary hall where the proceedings will be held, is expected to be completed by Tuesday so officials can determine whether further adjustments are needed.
The Senate President said preparations include security arrangements, crowd movement, and access inside the Senate building, noting that the chamber has limited space.
“Yung seguridad, yung mobility sa loob ng ating opisina. Alam naman natin, Senado ay napakaliit na opisina. Kaya kung dadagsa ang tao, kailangan maayos yung flow ng mga taong papasok,” he said.
He said he is also preparing for his role as presiding officer of the impeachment court by studying the four Articles of Impeachment filed by the House prosecution panel.
He said he has also been reviewing videos of the 2012 impeachment trial of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona to better understand the conduct of impeachment proceedings.
Under the Constitution and Senate rules, Gatchalian said the Senate President serves as the presiding officer of the impeachment court.
“Nakasaad sa rules natin na ang Senate President ang tatayong presiding officer. So yun ang aming direksiyon sa ngayon,” he said.
He added that he has been consulting legal experts, while his experience in presiding over committee hearings may help him manage the proceedings.
Senate Secretary Renato Bantug, who also serves as clerk of the impeachment court, said preparations are also focused on logistics, including the rooms to be used and the audio system in the session hall.
“Yung aming preparasyon itong bukas at Martes kailangan mag-ikot at matignan at ma-check yung mga rooms na gagamitin, audio sa session hall. More on the physical logistics tayo,” Bantug said in a separate radio interview.
Bantug said the impeachment trial will be open to the public, with seats to be allocated in the plenary hall for those who want to watch the proceedings.
Walk-in visitors may be accommodated as long as they register through the Senate’s Visitor Management System. Online reservations may also be made.
However, Bantug said seating will be limited, with only 340 seats in the gallery and 30 seats in the VIP box.
He said about one-third of the available seats will be set aside for the general public, while the remaining seats will be divided between guests of the prosecution and defense panels.
The trial will also be livestreamed through various platforms and aired live by television networks.