Some manifestations that are “obviously irrelevant” are now beginning to test the patience of observers at the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.

Senator-judge Panfilo Lacson (Senate PRIB photo)

Senator-Judge Panfilo “Ping”  Lacson pointed this out on Thursday, July 16, after sharing a lighthearted exchange with other fellow senator-judges, saying even those in the gallery would want a motion to adjourn the trial to cut those kinds of manifestations that drag the impeachment proceedings.

“DAY 6: A fellow senator-judge has jokingly asked me if he can move for the division of the house every time he feels annoyed by manifestations obviously irrelevant to the impeachment trial. I told him, a motion to adjourn will elicit more applause from the equally annoyed gallery," Lacson said in a post on X.

https://x.com/iampinglacson/status/2077574135904137666

On Wednesday, the sixth day of the impeachment trial featured no witness testimonies but the Court had to endure some lengthy manifestations, some of which centered on the timing of a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) probe into the multibillion-peso sports complex in Tarlac for the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.

During the trial, Senator-judges Robinhood Padilla, Alan Peter Cayetano, and Pia Cayetano had to question the timing of the NBI’s investigation, suggesting it could have a “chilling effect” on the ongoing impeachment trial.

Last weekend, Lacson had proposed policies that would help minimize delays in the proceedings, including having witnesses expected to testify during the week remain readily available within the Senate premises.

He also stressed that speeding up the trial does not mean compromising the presentation of evidence, but maximizing the limited time available to the Impeachment Court.

Meanwhile, Alan Cayetano insisted on his belief that the NBI investigations could have quietly investigated the issue without publicly announcing the probe days before NBI Director Melvin Matibag is set to testify before the impeachment court.

Cayetano said his concern was not the investigation itself but the possible effect of publicly announcing it while the impeachment court is carrying out its constitutional duty.

“We have to make sure that the integrity of the court is intact. I hope this issue of the integrity of the court becomes an issue for all of us,” he said.

Moreover, Cayetano said the SEA Games issue had already been scrutinized several times over the years, including by the Senate and the Office of the Ombudsman where he personally answered questions about the country's hosting of the regional sporting event.

He called Matibag’s announcement a “misfire,” and challenged the NBI chief in linking him to the infrastructure component of the SEA Games, saying the projects cited by the NBI were not handled by the Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (PHISGOC), which he chaired.

“Bakit ko sinabing (Why) misfire? (It’s because) I had nothing to do with the infrastructure," he said.

Defending the country's hosting of the regional games, Cayetano said it brought pride to the Philippines and opened opportunities for Filipino athletes.

“The SEA Games gave us so much honor. So far, it is still the biggest SEA Games in history. Many of our athletes launched their careers, even going to gold medals in the Olympics,” he said.