Pimentel: Senate can act on impeachment on its own

By Wilnard Bacelonia, Philippine News Agency

MANILA – Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel III on Thursday said the Senate has a solid legal basis to act on an impeachment complaint even without a special session called by the President.

Speaking at the Kapihan sa Senado forum, Pimentel argued that both the Constitution and Senate rules allow the chamber to convene independently to process the Articles of Impeachment.

“Mabuti naman na nag-iingat nga siya (It is good that he’s being careful),” Pimentel said, pertaining to Senate President Francis Escudero who earlier said Congress can only convene a special session through a call from the President but noted that this excludes the purpose of conducting impeachment proceedings.

Pimentel, however, noted that after a careful study, they have come up with the conclusion that the Senate has a strong legal basis to act on the impeachment complaint or the Articles of Impeachment.

He clarified that the Senate, acting as an impeachment court, does not require the same special session that only the President can convene, which involves both chambers of Congress.

“Hindi po ito yung special session na kailangan tawagin ng Presidente kasi pati House of Representatives aabalahin. Hindi naman sila kailangan abalahin pa eh (This is not the special session that the President needs to call on because it will involve the House of Representatives. There is no need to bother them anymore),” he explained, noting that the House has already fulfilled its constitutional duty by transmitting the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate.

Pimentel emphasized that the Senate must act “forthwith” as mandated by the Constitution, and its ability to function should not be contingent on the actions of an external figure, including the President.

“Inisip ko na obligasyon ito ng Senado tapos sasabihin namin na hindi namin magampanan ang aming obligasyon kasi hawak ng isang tao yung bola, kailangan siyang magtawag ng special session. Paano naging obligasyon ng Senado yun na hindi pala namin magampanan ang aming sarili kasi naka-contingent pala siya sa kilos ng isang tao na labas sa Senado, the President? (I am thinking that this is an obligation of the Senate and then we will say that we cannot fulfill our obligation because a person is holding the ball, he has to call a special session. How did that became an obligation of the Senate that we could not fulfill ourselves because it was contingent on the actions of someone outside the Senate, the President?)” he argued.

While acknowledging that only the Senate President can officially convene a session, Pimentel suggested that public sentiment could pressure the chamber’s leadership to act swiftly.

“Dapat siguro mayroon silang maramdaman na pressure sa taumbayan na ito ang tamang pagbasa sa Konstitusyon (Maybe they should feel pressure from the people that this is the correct reading of the Constitution),” he said.

The remarks came amid debates on the proper constitutional process for handling impeachment cases and whether the Senate should wait for executive intervention before proceeding.

Pimentel recently sent Escudero a letter urging him to act “forthwith” on the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, citing Article XI, Section 3 of the 1987 Constitution, which states that once the House of Representatives transmits impeachment articles, “trial by the Senate shall forthwith proceed.”