Mobilization at the Senate for the impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte. (Kej Andrés via Wikimedia)
The Philippine Senate formally opened its second impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte on May 18, marking a historic moment in the country’s political trajectory.
Primarily, all 23 Senators, wearing a crimson robe, swore their oaths for the assigned role as senator-judge prior to convening the chamber. The trial began after the House secretary general and Sergeant-at-Arms handed over the Articles of Impeachment against Sara Duterte to the Senate last week.
During the initial session, the Senate issued a writ of summons, giving Duterte 10 days to submit her formal response to the legislature. If Duterte fails to comply within 10 days, the Senate would continue with the impeachment proceedings.
Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano presiding over the session stated, “the court, having been organised, and the Articles of Impeachment having been presented, let a writ of summons be issued to the Vice President, Sara Zimmerman Duterte”.
Malacañáng Palace echoed its respect for the mechanism and signalled non-interventionism, stating, “we know that the impeachment trial is the work and mandate of the Senate. The President does not need to interfere with the said mandate of the Senate because we have a separation of powers”.
The trial convened amid several shifts in the majority and minority blocs within the legislative coalitions. Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri joined the minority blocs while his counterpart, Senator JV Ejercito, declined the offer to act as a chair within the majority bloc, signaling a leadership shakeup and the chamber’s divisions.
Sara faces four provisional charges: betrayal of public trust and violation of the Constitutional mandates, alleged misuse of state funds, unexplained wealth linked to her and her husband and incitement of an alleged assassination plot against incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, his wife and the House speaker. The Senate requires a two-thirds majority vote as a threshold for Sara’s conviction and removal from office.
This Senate trial marks a new chapter in the trajectory of Philippine modern history, underscoring deepening division within its politics with both constitutional mandates and partisan rivalries. While the Senate has commenced its trial, it is apparent that there are significant divisions within, reflecting a further relentless struggle for power among the country’s top officials.
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