Special session can't be called for impeachment trial - Carpio

President Marcos cannot call a special session of the Senate for the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte as such can only be used for enactment of laws, according to retired Supreme Court senior associate justice Antonio Carpio.

- By DAPHNE GALVEZ

He was reacting to the President's pronouncement that he would call for a special session if requested to do so by the Senate.

But Senate President Francis Escudero is averse to the idea of holding a special session, a proposal raised likewise by former Senate president Franklin Drilon.

With the current Senate having only the period of June 2 to June 13 to convene, there would simply be "no more time" to hold an impeachment trial, Carpio said. The delay in the transmittal of the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate by the House of Representatives, he said, had prevented the senators from taking up the matter before the adjournment of session.

Carpio also explained that even if the trial proceeds, the Senate must first revise and publish new impeachment rules, and give Duterte 10 days to respond – a process that would certainly take time.

“First of all, they haven’t started yet. They will start fresh. They have issued the order for Sara to comment. They have not even put it in their agenda, so it’s the next Senate that will put it in the agenda for the first time. Not a single witness has testified,” Carpio said on One News on Thursday.

According to Carpio, the impeachment trials of former president Joseph Estrada and the late chief justice Renato Corona also did not start right away due to long preparations.

He also said that an impeachment trial of Duterte would be deemed over – in her favor – if she decides to resign before a sentence is handed down. “It’s because she’s no longer in office,” Carpio said, explaining the dismissal of the case against her.

And if Duterte resigns before a judgment of conviction, she would still be able to run in the 2028 elections, Carpio stressed.

If the Senate proceeds with the trial, Carpio said Duterte may challenge the chamber’s jurisdiction before the Supreme Court.