While legal experts and members of the House prosecution team said it is not within the power of the senator-judges to dismiss the articles of impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte outright, nothing can stop them from making such a move, a veteran lawyer involved in the 2012 trial that convicted the late Chief Justice Renato Corona said.

Lawyer Tranquil Salvador III, a member of Corona’s defense team, said there is  nothing to impede  the senator-judges from attempting a dismissal.

“We cannot simply say that because a motion to dismiss is not expressly stated in the rules, it cannot be attempted. Could they still try? Yes. There is room for motions generally. Whether they will go that route or test it, even if it has never been done before, remains to be seen,” Salvador explained in a television interview.

“I’m not ruling it out, but I’m also not saying it will succeed. Under the impeachment rules, you won’t find the words ‘motion to dismiss’ or ‘motion to quash.’ But remember, the 23 senators, or 24 if Senator Bato (Ronald dela Rosa)  appears, will decide,” he said. 

Nonetheless, if such a motion is raised, “it should come from the parties, especially the accused, not from the senators themselves, so the senators do not appear biased or interested,” according to Salvador.

The Constitution states that once the articles of impeachment reach the Senate, the trial must proceed forthwith.

If you search the Senate Rules on Impeachment, you won’t find any provision specifically mentioning a motion to dismiss or motion to quash. Still, there is a provision allowing motions in general.

“A party may file a motion, and the senators themselves may  introduce motions. When a motion is raised, one hour is allotted for discussion, and each senator may participate with two minutes per question,” Salvador said.

He added that the Constitution also does not require the presiding officer to be a lawyer. 

“The framers assumed that the senators would individually possess competence and judgment. However, in reality, there are legal aspects that may be unfamiliar to non-lawyers — admissibility of evidence, authentication of evidence, presenting evidence, raising objections, and resolving those objections,” the veteran lawyer held.

Ideally, for efficiency, it is better if the presiding officer can rule immediately on procedural matters so that proceedings can continue smoothly, he said.

Can you imagine if every objection required consultation with an impeachment manager? Still, if the impeachment manager works quickly, that setup could function, he added.

Time enough

The House prosecutors, meanwhile, branded the Senate’s proposed schedule for the impeachment trial of VP Duterte as providing enough time to present the case, even as the proceedings approach the start of the national budget season.

In an interview, Rep. Renee Co, one of the spokespersons of the House prosecution panel, said they welcomed the Senate’s initial schedule setting the trial three times a week beginning in July.

“For now, we welcome the announcement that there will be schedules the Senate is arranging,” Co said. “As to whether it’s going to be satisfactory, we’ll have to see whether the half-day schedule would be sufficient.”

The Senate earlier announced that trial sessions would begin at 2 p.m. Monday to Wednesday,  weeks before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his State of the Nation Address and before Congress begins deliberations on the proposed 2027 national budget.