Senate President Sherwin Gatchalian on Wednesday expressed optimism that the Senate impeachment court could deliver a verdict in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte “before December” this year.
Speaking to reporters in a chance interview at the Senate, Gatchalian noted that the trial’s timetable has significantly accelerated following the prosecution panel’s decision to drop 15 of its lined-up witnesses.
“Hopefully before December matapos na natin. Hopefully ha, may verdict. Pag nakita niyo, nagpapalit ang timetable, depende sa prosecution, depende sa defense. So, yun ang target with this new timetable. We’re hoping na matapos ito ngayon (Hopefully before December we can already have a verdict. As you can see, the timetable shifts depending on the prosecution and the defense. So, that’s our target with this new timetable. We’re hoping to finish it soon),” Gatchalian said.
The development comes after the prosecution team decided on Tuesday to drop 15 witnesses intended for Article 1, which pertains to the alleged misuse of confidential funds. Instead, the panel plans to subpoena the Vice President to testify directly before the impeachment court.
Private prosecutor Lorna Kapunan explained that out of the 27 original witnesses for Article 1, 10 have already been presented, while formal stipulations rendered the testimony of two others unnecessary.
Gatchalian underscored that trimming the prosecution’s witness list drastically reduces the overall duration of the trial.
“Malaking bagay iyon. In fact, malaking kabawasan yun sa timetable. Yung two weeks na almost meron tayong 10 days na full-day ang impeachment. Pagtapos ng pag-declaration ng break, meron tayong 10 days na full-day impeachment. Even budget wala. So, target natin 10 o’clock until matapos tayo. So, hopefully in one day, makadalawa o tatlo na witnesses tayo (That’s a big help. In fact, it will greatly shorten the timetable, since we will have 10 full days dedicated to the impeachment trial. Then, following the scheduled break, we will hold another 10 full days of hearings. Even budget deliberations will be deferred. Our target is to start at 10:00 AM each day until we finish, hopefully hearing two to three witnesses per day),” he explained.
Gatchalian also addressed inquiries regarding the participation of Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta, emphasizing that they must seek permission from the Sandiganbayan if they wish to attend the trial proceedings.
“Si Senator Marcoleta at Senator Jinggoy ay nasa kustodiya ngayon ng Sandiganbayan, which is under the jurisdiction of the court. So by process, doon sila magpapaalam kung makaka-attend sila ng session, kung makaka attend sila ng impeachment. In the past ganon din. Nangyari itong may mga na-detain na senators. Ganon din ang nangyaring proseso (Senators Marcoleta and Jinggoy Estrada are currently under the custody of the Sandiganbayan. Following standard procedure, they must request permission directly from the court if they wish to attend the sessions and the impeachment trial. That same process was observed in the past when other senators were detained),” Gatchalian clarified.
He added that it is not the Senate’s role to file a petition on behalf of the detained lawmakers, “they have to ask permission from the Sandiganbayan and the Sandiganbayan will decide whether they can attend the session and the impeachment trial… They should be the ones to ask permission from the court since they fall under its jurisdiction.”
Gatchalian made the clarification after Senator Erwin Tulfo called on the impeachment court to address the required voting threshold for a verdict, given that four senators are currently unable to participate physically.
Senators Estrada and Marcoleta are presently detained over non-bailable plunder charges; Senator Ronald dela Rosa remains in hiding due to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and Senator Loren Legarda has been on extended medical leave since August 3.
Tulfo urged Presiding Officer Senator Francis Escudero to review his July 6 ruling, which stipulated that a two-thirds vote of the total 24-member Senate, or 16 votes, is required to convict the Vice President. Currently, only 20 of the 24 senators are actively participating in the trial.