THE camp of Vice President Sara Duterte is pushing for the dismissal of the impeachment case because it allegedly has no evidence to counter the accusations contained in the Articles of Impeachment, a House prosecutor said.
House trial spokesperson and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong said Duterte’s answer before the impeachment court was lengthy, but its main objective was to stop the proceedings rather than directly answer the charges in a full trial.
“To be honest with you, it’s quite voluminous ‘yung mismo sagot nila. But may gumawa naman din sila ng summary, executive summary ng kanilang mga kasagot,” he pointed out.
The House prosecution panel earlier filed a manifestation instead of a reply, maintaining that Duterte’s answer did not warrant a point-by-point response.
“Pero ang position talaga namin doon, kaya ang House prosecution team nagbigay na lang ng manifestation. Dahil paano mo sagutin ‘yung isang bagay na wala naman talagang sagutin,” he said.
According to the lawmaker, the defense’s central plea is for the Senate impeachment court to terminate the case before evidence can be presented and tested during trial.
“Kumbaga kung i-summarize mo, ang gusto lang talaga nila is ma-dismiss ‘yung kaso. Wala sa Constitution na mayroong choice ang Senado na i-dismiss ang kaso,” he said.
He stressed that the Constitution mandates the Senate impeachment court to hear the case and render judgment, either through acquittal or conviction, after trial.
“Ang choice lang talaga doon is to have a full trial and then reach judgment whether to acquit or to convict. Mahirap mo kasing sagutin din ang isang bagay, ‘yung kanilang naging answer doon, na ang kinu-question nila is ‘yung entire process,” Alonto Adiong said.
The House prosecution panel has repeatedly argued that the procedural and constitutional issues raised by Duterte’s lawyers are not new, saying these had already been raised during the House proceedings.
“Kung titignan mo ‘yung kanilang objection, it did not happen just now, it did not happen during the confirmation hearings of the Justice Committee. It already came out last year pa, and rehashed lang talaga siya,” the solon said.
He also noted that Duterte is represented by a highly regarded law firm, making the defense’s position more striking to the prosecution.
For Alonto Adiong, the move to seek outright dismissal shows the defense’s weakness in confronting the substance of the impeachment complaint.
“Sa palagay ko, the reason why they wanted to dismiss the case, appealing or praying for the court to dismiss the case right away or outright dismissal, it’s because they don’t have anything to offer as a counter evidence to refute the allegations contained in the Articles of Impeachment,” he said.
The impeachment court is expected to proceed with the pretrial on June 18, while the trial proper is set to begin in July.