Chua finds impeachment court’s 2nd requirement`questionable’

The Senate impeachment court’s second requirement from the House of Representatives, which is for members of the 20th Congress to certify that they will pursue Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment case, is questionable, a lawmaker said on Wednesday, July 2, 2025. INQUIRER PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate impeachment court’s second requirement from the House of Representatives, which is for members of the 20th Congress to certify that they will pursue Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment case, is questionable, a lawmaker said on Wednesday.

Prosecution team member and Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, in an interview with reporters, was asked about the second requirement sought by the Senate from the House for the impeachment trial to proceed.

In response, Chua said that he thinks that the second requirement is questionable since the 1987 Constitution does not state that such is needed for a trial to move on.

“To me, the second requirement that they are mentioning, to be honest with you, this requirement asked of us, we believe that it seems to be problematic and questionable,” Chua said.

“So kaya nga sa feeling namin, in fact, pati ‘yong submission ng certification, hindi naman kailangan eh, ‘di ba? […] Kasi wala naman naka ganun sa ano eh (Constitution), wala namang legal basis eh,” he added.

“So we feel that, in fact, even the submission of a certification is not needed, right?  There is nothing in the Constitution that requires that. There is no legal basis,” he added.

Aside from this, Chua said that prosecution members are discussing what would be the effect of compliance with the Senate’s requirements, given that some legal luminaries like Akbayan party-list Rep. Chel Diokno have warned that it could be a trap.

“We are talking about that, what is the effect if we comply?  So we have to balance everything. We have to be very careful because it might lead to something, since they are giving meaning to everything, right?  But you know, the impeachment should not be so strict, because this is not a court of law,” he said.

“But just the same, the reason why we are complying is because we do not want to be accused of delaying the hearing, the impeachment hearing,” Chua added.

Diokno, in a separate interview with reporters on Tuesday, said that the certification from the 20th Congress on the willingness to pursue Duterte’s impeachment case may be misconstrued as violative of the one-year limitation on impeachment complaints.

Under Article XI, Section 3(5) of the 1987 Constitution, impeachment proceedings cannot be initiated against the same official “more than once within a period of one year.”

Earlier, Senate impeachment court spokesperson Reginald Tongol said that certifications required by the impeachment court from the House should not be seen as “traps and measures to impede” Duterte’s trial.

“The specific certifications being required from the House are all part of the effort to guarantee procedural legitimacy and to uphold constitutional standards,” said Tongol in a press conference.

READ: Impeachment court orders must not be seen as ‘traps,’ says Tongol 

Vice President Duterte was impeached last February 5 after 215 lawmakers filed and signed the fourth impeachment complaint, based on allegations of confidential fund misuse within her offices, threats she made to ranking officials, and other possible violations of the Constitution.

The articles of impeachment were immediately forwarded to the Senate on the same day, as the 1987 Constitution requires a trial to start forthwith if at least one-third of all House members, in this case, just 102 out of 306, have signed and endorsed the petition.

READ: House impeaches Sara Duterte, fast-tracking transmittal to Senate

However, Duterte’s trial has stalled after the Senate sent the articles of impeachment back to the House, due to concerns about possible constitutional infirmities.

These concerns had to do with, first, whether the limit of one impeachment proceeding initiated against an impeachable official per year was not violated; and second, whether the articles do not step on the jurisdiction and authority of the 20th Congress.

The first requirement of the Senate impeachment court has been complied with already by the House.

READ: House prosecutors submit Sara Duterte impeach complaint certification 

However, lawmakers said the second requirement cannot be complied with yet because House members for the 20th Congress will only convene on July 28 — the opening of the first regular session, which takes place hours before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s fourth State of the Nation Address.

Aside from the remand, the impeachment proceedings have also been hit by other delays.  Initially, Senate President Francis Escudero sent a letter to House Speaker Martin Romualdez, inviting the prosecution team to read the articles before the Senate plenary on June 2, when Congress resumes its session.

It was eventually moved to a later date, on June 11, the last session day of the 19th Congress./coa