Impeachment Trial of Vice President Bogged Down by Technicalities, Former Senate President Notes

MANILA, Philippines — Technical arguments surrounding Vice President Sara Duterte's alleged "grave threats" are slowing down her impeachment trial, according to former Senate President Franklin Drilon. He suggested that the proceedings should focus on whether her actions constitute an impeachable offense of "betrayal of public trust" rather than getting bogged down in the authenticity of her remarks. Drilon expressed the public's frustration with the slow pace of the trial, noting that both parties have been objecting to each other's questions regarding the authenticity of Duterte's November 23, 2024, press briefing statement, where she claimed to have hired an assassin against President Marcos, the First Lady, and the former speaker if they succeeded in killing her first. He argued that the authenticity of the statement is not in question, as the Vice President herself referred to her controversial remarks. Drilon emphasized that the impeachment trial's purpose is not to determine guilt for "grave threats" but to ascertain if her conduct amounts to an impeachable offense like "betrayal of public trust." He also questioned Senator Alan Peter Cayetano's line of questioning, which sought to establish whether Duterte's remark was merely a "conditional threat." Drilon stated that whether the threat was conditional or not, the core issue is whether her actions are acceptable for a Vice President and if telling someone "you'll kill me" constitutes a betrayal of public trust. Furthermore, Drilon disagreed with restricting the questions that senator-judges can ask. He asserted that they possess the power and discretion to ask questions as they see fit to uncover the truth, and should not be limited. Regarding the tax records of the Vice President and her husband, Drilon stated that the Senate impeachment court can order their opening and submission as evidence. While he prefers the Senate impeachment court to decide, he suggested that the President could order the records opened to appease public sentiment, recalling how the refusal to open the "second envelope" during the 2000 impeachment trial of former President Joseph Estrada led to his ouster. Drilon served as a senator-judge in both the Estrada impeachment trial and that of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona in 2012.