Timing, indeed, is everything—even outside the theater.
The above is not from us. It was Henry Fonda’s and it reminds us about the way the House of Representatives and the Senate handled the impeachment complaint filed against Vice President Sara Duterte.
The House under Speaker Martin Romualdez took months to file the case, and just one day —February 5—to give it a 235 vote to be transmitted to the Senate later that day, a few minutes before the Senate session closed.
If this were not planned or premeditated, the sun will rise from the West tomorrow.
Congress is closed for five months due to the May 2025 midterm elections, and many senators and congressmen will be very busy campaigning for a new term.
The two chambers will be back in June, but by then, there will be a new Senate and a new House of Representatives, and perhaps the lawmakers are not that obsessed anymore in seeing the Vice President impeached.
Depending on the future composition of the Senate in June, the fixation to remove VP Sara could be enhanced. Could this be the reason for Bongbong Marcos’ prediction of a 12-0 in favor of the BBM candidates?
But then again it is not entirely impossible that the Senate could convene as an impeachment court during the long break, provided that not one senator rejects the idea. This is the position aired by Sen. Koko Pimentel, although with seven of the sitting senators busy campaigning, this group would most likely oppose it.
The House’s effort to impeach Sara Duterte will have to be consigned to the back burner—for now. After the dust of the frenzy has settled, it has just become a grand impeachment show, a futile exercise.
Senate President Francis Escudero was firm in his policy that no impeachment trial would be held before June, 2025.
As Marcos had cautioned the lawmakers, there’s no use ousting the VP at this time. The powerful church Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) had the same admonition. Both were unheeded by the representatives whose devotion to their Speaker precedes everything, perhaps even the concerns of the constituencies that they represent.
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