The impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives.against Vice President Sara Duterte won't take much longer.

According to San Juan lone district Rep. Ysabel Maria Zamora, the House Committee on Justice could wrap up the proceedings by the end of May, well within the 60 session day limit from the time the impeachment complaints against Duterte were initiated.

“From the time of the initiation or referral to the Committee on Justice, it’s 60 session days. So our estimate is, if I’m not mistaken, mga end of May (it will be by the end of May),” Zamora, a vice chairperson of the panel, said on March 28 during the Saturday News Forum at Dapo Restaurant in Quezon City.

It was last Feb. 23 when four verified and endorsed impeachment complaints were referred to the justice panel. Two of the complaints remain active, and the committee is trying to determine probable cause in those complaints.

Zamora says the timeframe matters because the committee is working through a politically charged case, while also trying to show that its members are handling the proceedings without bias against the Vice President.

She acknowledged the public criticism and the intense scrutiny surrounding the complaints.

“The congressmen have read the complaints, and they believe that we are correct in declaring it to be sufficient in form, sufficient in substance, and that the affidavits or the annexes to the complaints are sufficient to show that there is probable cause. Of course, like we said, we will still have to go through the Committee on Justice hearing to declare probable cause,” Zamora explained.

The lawyer-legislator said in the same forum that she believed the House plenary ultimately has the numbers to impeach Duterte, if and when the complaints reach that stahe.

But she clarified that having the numbers does not mean the committee already closed the case or pre-judged the outcome, because the process still has to move through hearings where the panel must formally determine whether or not probable cause exists before any recommendation can advance.

“Like I said earlier, I admit that there are qualms, that there are concerns by some of the congressmen or maybe a lot of them. But people still believe in the charges," Zamora noted.

The House's submission of the articles of impeachment against Duterte will trigger a Senate impeachment trial, which will determine whether or not she stays in office.

A key part of the justice committee hearings moving forward is the testimony of alleged Duterte bagman, the detained Ramil Madriaga.

Zamora reckoned that questions on the credibility of the particular witness should be settled in the committee, not through premature attacks meant to discredit testimony before it can be examined.

The San Juan solon said the Duterte camp sought to cast doubt on Madriaga by branding him a tainted source even before the panel could fully assess the records tied to the complaint.

“Ang stand po namin sa Committee on Justice as regards allegations that Madriaga is of questionable character, kaya nga po tayo nag-hearing," Zamora said.

(Our stand in the Committee on Justice regarding allegations that Madriaga is of questionable character is precisely why we are holding a hearing.)

“Wala pa naman kaming sinasabing may probable cause na. Hindi pa po naman namin sinabi na there is probable cause to forward the articles of impeachment to the Senate. In fact, wala pang articles of impeachment,” she added.

(We have not yet declared that there is probable cause. We have not said that there is probable cause to forward the articles of impeachment to the Senate. In fact, there are no articles of impeachment yet.)

“Magkakaroon lang po ng articles of impeachment kapag sabihin po ng House Committee on Justice may probable cause. Gagawa po tayo ng resolution at kalakip ng resolution na ‘yan ang articles of impeachment,” she further explained.

(There will only be articles of impeachment once the House Committee on Justice says there is probable cause. We will then draft a resolution, and attached to that resolution will be the articles of impeachment.)