Senate to tackle SC's impeach ruling on Aug. 6

Senators are set to vote next week on whether or not to proceed with the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte following a closed-door caucus on the recent Supreme Court (SC) decision, legislative priorities and committee chairmanships.

- By NEIL JAYSON SERVALLOS

During yesterday's plenary session, Senate President Francis Escudero announced that a consensus was reached during the all-member caucus to give all senators time to study the SC's 97-page decision.

"For the record, it was agreed in caucus that the matter will be decided upon by the Senate on Aug. 6, 2025 when we open session on that date in order to afford ample and sufficient time to the members to study the 97-page SC decision, excluding the concurring and separate opinions filed by five or six additional magistrates of the SC," Escudero said.

During a press conference before the session, Escudero bared that he was of the opinion that the impeachment court should no longer convene as the SC had already declared the Articles of Impeachment void from the start and that the Senate no longer has jurisdiction over the case.

Despite this, he said the matter would need to be decided through a vote.

Senate Minority Leader Vicente Sotto III confirmed that some senators suggested acting on it immediately while others requested more time to review the decision.

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, aligned with the minority, said the delay was meant to allow a more informed debate in plenary, especially for non-lawyer members.

He acknowledged that some senators had considered moving to dismiss the complaint outright on Monday but agreed to wait.

"They gave in to the request of our colleagues... they all considered the request of Aug. 6 instead," he said.

Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva described the caucus as a "very fruitful discussion," where senators expressed various views on the issue.