Former Office of the Vice President (OVP) spokesperson and lawyer Barry Gutierrez questioned the Senate anew for “not” doing its job of convening as an impeachment court for the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Vice President Sara Duterte and former vice presidential spokesman Barry Gutierrez (OVP photos)

In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), the former lawmaker and spokesman of ex-vice president Leni Robredo criticized the upper chamber for the schedule it set on Duterte's impeachment.

“Minor correction: The Senate is NOT doing its job, since it has not yet convened as an impeachment court,” he wrote.

“In fact, ano nga ba plano (what’s the plan)? Not to do its job until July, tama ba (right)?,” he added.

In previous X posts, Gutierrez has specifically criticized Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero for saying that Senate is not compelled to begin the impeachment trial immediately after the transmission of the Articles of Impeachment by the House of Representatives.

But lawmakers and legal luminaries, including framers of the 1987 Constitution, said that Senate must “forthwith” proceed with the impeachment trial once it received the Articles of Impeachment from Congress.

“‘Forthwith’ = immediately = agad. It certainly doesn't mean ‘five months later.’ Salamat naman may nagsalita nang Senador dito: Si Sen Koko at Sen Risa (Thank you that senators finally spoke up about this: Sen Koko and Sen Risa),” Gutierrez posted.

“Ang tanong, kikilos ba si SP Chiz (The question is, will SP Chiz act)?,” he went on.

Koko referred to Senator Koko Pimentel, who on Feb. 14, urged Escudero to act “without any delay” on the impeachment case against Duterte since “this is the Senate's duty”.

“Given the gravity of impeachment proceedings, it is imperative that the Senate uphold its duty with urgency, diligence, and a steadfast commitment to the Constitution. I appreciate your prompt attention to this matter and look forward to your response," Pimentel, a bar topnotcher, wrote in a letter.

The House of Representatives on Feb. 5 formally transmitted the fourth impeachment complaint against the Vice President to the Senate, with an overwhelming supermajority support of 215 signatures.

The transmittal happened just before the Senate adjourned for a break, but the lawmakers failed to tackle the impeachment case before formally going on a break until July.

Session will resume on June 2 until June 13, but Escudero has said that the trial will likely begin in the 20th Congress. By then, a new set of senators would comprise the Senate as this would be after they are sworn in on June 30 and after President Marcos' fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 21.

But Gutierrez, a former lawmaker himself, argued that the “Senate sitting as an impeachment court is a different body than the Senate as a legislative chamber.”

“It is not subject to the schedule prescribed by the legislative calendar. So, yes, they can hold the trial even if Congress has adjourned,” he said in an X post on Feb. 5.

He also cited a previous Senate Resolution No. 39 that said the Senate President shall set the time and date of the trial and inform the House of Representatives after it received the Articles of Impeachment from the lower chamber.

Gutierrez added that under Article VI Section 15 of the Philippine Constitution, even President Marcos can be compelled to call a special session of Congress “anytime” if a request is made.

“If he (Marcos) does in this case, the Senate may constitute itself as an impeachment court before the scheduled return in June,” he explained.