By Bea Rollo
(June 6, 2025) – Incoming Sen. Ping Lacson has called for the impeachment trial of Vice Pres. Sara Duterte to proceed under the 20th Congress, stressing only the Senate acting as an impeachment court—not as a legislative body—has the authority to decide on the matter.
“For me, the best way forward is to let the impeachment trial cross over to the 20th Congress because it can no longer be done in the 19th Congress,” the lawmaker said in One News’ Storycon on Thursday.
Lacson, in effect, rejected a draft resolution reportedly from the office of Sen. Bato dela Rosa, which seeks a supposed de facto dismissal of the case.
“There is no sense in the draft resolution calling for the de facto dismissal of the impeachment case against Vice Pres. Duterte. Only the Senate as an impeachment court can render a decision on the matter, not the Senate as a legislative body, as the latter has no jurisdiction or legal authority to do so,” he said.
He emphasized that while time constraints prevent the trial from happening in the 19th Congress, such a limitation does not apply to the Senate that would act as an impeachment court in the 20th Congress.
Citing the June 2 Senate debates, Lacson referenced Sen. Koko Pimentel III’s invocation of the 2004 Pimentel vs. Joint Congressional Hearing case which differentiated the Senate’s roles as a legislative body and as an impeachment court.
“If they [senators] are not acting as an impeachment court, they have no personality to dismiss the impeachment case,” Lacson said.
“The only entity that can act on an impeachment case properly transmitted by the House is the (Senate) impeachment court itself,” he added.
Lacson also expressed doubt if the resolution could hurdle the plenary to bar the convening of the impeachment court.
“They (senators who would support the resolution) can always try but I think the Supreme Court can strike it down if someone questions the resolution,” he said.
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