Solon says Sara Duterte impeachment to proceed in next Congress

Rep. Lorenz Defensor —Lorenz Defensor FB page photo

MANILA, Philippines — The impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte should proceed regardless of who serves as senator-judges.

In an interview on Wednesday, Iloilo 3rd District Rep. Lorenz Defensor compared it to courts that retain jurisdiction of cases even if judges come and go.

Defensor maintained that the function of the Senate as an impeachment court would not be affected by the transition from the 19th Congress to the 20th Congress, despite concerns from several sectors.

READ: Sotto insists Marcos is against VP Duterte’s impeachment

Defensor, a member of the House of Representatives’ 11-person prosecution team, noted that the impeachment is a duty that is separate from the Senate’s legislative function, likening the body to regular courts which continue to discuss cases even if presiding judges resign or get reappointed.

“Let us remember that even after the 19th Congress ends, what ceases is our legislative power, but an impeachment proceeding already filed with the Senate will not end, and we can compare it to a case in court, once a case is filed with the trial court, the judge may retire, the judge may get promoted, but the case stays on with the trial court,” Defensor, speaking in Filipino, told reporters.

“The case does not get dismissed just because judges were replaced.  And while we agree that the impeachment is not a judicial proceeding, the procedure when it comes to the trial, the jurisdiction of the Senate would not go away.  So like new judges in a trial court, the senator-judges that will come in in the 20th Congress will also take their oath and assume as senator judge,” he added.

Aside from this, Defensor noted that impeachment proceedings in the Philippines were patterned after the American model.  According to the lawmaker, there have been several instances wherein impeachment complaints crossed over to a new edition of the Senate following an election.

“It does not mean that the case will be dismissed.  Our impeachment provisions under our constitution were patterned after the American constitution, and in the case of America, there are many instances where the impeachment crossed over to the next Congress.  The impeachment proceedings against Justice Loderbach, Judge Pickering, former President Bill Clinton, crossed over to the next Senate,” he said.

“We also have to understand that the impeachment is the highest form of national inquest in our country.  It should not be stopped because the impeachment is intended to protect the people, to protect the government from a high public official who is sitting in office and should be removed if necessary, if she committed a violation of the constitution,” he added.

Earlier, former Senate President Vicente Sotto III — who during the 2025 midterm elections secured a seat in the Senate for the 20th Congress — warned that the impeachment trial “carrying over” to the 20th Congress may be a justiciable issue or a matter that can be up for debates and may be decided by a court.

Sotto made these comments when asked what would happen if the current 19th Congress fails to finish the impeachment trial before June 30 — the last day of the current lawmakers’ term.

Duterte was impeached last February 5 after 215 House lawmakers filed and verified a fourth impeachment complaint, which centered on issues such as the alleged misuse of the confidential fund (CF) within the Vice President’s offices, and her assassination threats to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.

The articles of impeachment were immediately transmitted to the Senate, as the 1987 Constitution requires a trial to start forthwith if at least one-third of all House members—in this case, just 102 out of 306 — have signed and endorsed the petition.

Trial did not start immediately because the articles of impeachment were not forwarded to the Senate plenary before the session ended last February 5.  However, recent developments indicate that the proceedings may start soon, with House prosecutors invited to be present before the Senate on Monday, June 2, to read the articles of impeachment.

Earlier, Defensor said that one member of the prosecution panel would present the articles on Monday, saying that they have already agreed as to who would do this task.

According to Defensor, not all 11 prosecutors were required to attend the presentation of the articles of impeachment.

The articles of impeachment are the grounds for which an impeachable officer, in this case Vice President Duterte, was impeached.  Under the verified impeachment complaint approved by the House last February 5, seven articles were submitted:

Betrayal of public trust, commission of high crimes due to her threats to assassinate President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos, and Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez

READ: House impeaches Sara Duterte, fast-tracking transmittal to Senate

Betrayal of public trust and graft and corruption due to misuse of CFs within the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Office of the Vice President (OVP)

Betrayal of public trust and bribery within the DepEd

Violation of the 1987 Constitution and betrayal of public trust due to unexplained wealth and failure to disclose assets

Commission of high crimes, due to involvement in extrajudicial killings in the drug war

Betrayal of public trust due to alleged destabilization plots and high crimes of sedition and insurrection

Betrayal of acts due to her unbecoming conduct as Vice President/mr