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Metro Manila, Philippines – All eyes are on the Senate on Monday, May 18, as the leadership of Alan Peter Cayetano hangs in the balance with talks of another possible leadership change to coincide with the convening of the Impeachment Court for the case of Vice President Sara Duterte. An unceremonial twist swept Cayetano to the leadership last week marked by the sudden appearance of absentee Sen. Bato dela Rosa, but just days after, Cayetano admitted threats to his new role. A successful ouster would make him the shortest sitting Senate president in Philippine history. “Expected naman ‘yun e [That’s expected],” he said in an interview with reporters last week, referring to another possible leadership change.  A number of names were reportedly floated as replacement, including Win Gatchalian and Kiko Pangilinan.  Pangilinan said he was not interested in the post, and would rather focus on his advocacy on food security.…

Metro Manila, Philippines – The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) has asked the Supreme Court to deny the petition filed by Senator Ronald dela Rosa in connection with the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigation into the Duterte administration’s war on drugs. In a comment submitted to the high court, the OSG said in its filing that Dela Rosa’s motions should be dismissed “for utter lack of merit.” “This is a case study in how the powerful corrodes the rule of law,” the OSG said in its filing, referring to Dela Rosa’s alleged refusal to recognize the enforcement of an ICC warrant against him. The OSG said Dela Rosa went into hiding after reports surfaced about a possible ICC warrant, resurfacing only to vote for Alan Peter Cayetano as Senate President before allegedly leaving the Senate premises again on May 14. The filing also revisited Dela Rosa’s role as former…

Metro Manila, Philippines – Former President Rodrigo Duterte may face trial for his crimes against humanity case at the International Criminal Court (ICC) beginning Nov. 30 based on a proposal by prosecutors. The prosecution panel said it expects to complete pre-trial preparations by Sept. 30, adding that the proposed timeline would make Duterte’s case “one of the fastest” to proceed to trial following the confirmation of charges. According to the filing, prosecutors still need to complete reviewing evidence, finalizing investigations, preparing witness testimonies, and securing protective measures for witnesses. The prosecution said it plans to rely on around 60 to 70 witnesses during trial, including insider witnesses, crime-base witnesses, and expert witnesses.  Around 25 to 30 witnesses are expected to testify live in court, while others may provide previously recorded testimony. Prosecutors estimated that direct examination of witnesses could take up to 200 hours due to the scale of the…

Metro Manila, Philippines – Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla on Saturday called out the Senate for supposedly refusing to receive a subpoena seeking security camera footage and other records related to the May 13 standoff inside the Senate building. Remulla said the subpoena is considered served. “Nagkakaproblema ha ‘yung aming process server, ayaw tanggapin sa Senate, pero may notice na,” Remulla said in an interview. “Hindi ko sila naintindihan. Basta sa akin considered served na ‘yan kahit hindi nila tinanggap.” [Translation: Our process server is encountering problems because the Senate refused to receive it, although notice has already been given. I do not understand them, but for me, it is considered served even if they did not accept it.] The ombudsman also referred to remarks by Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano on possible charges against National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Melvin Matibag, as it showed that Senate officials were aware…

Metro Manila, Philippines — Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano, in a letter to his colleagues, said the Senate will convene as an Impeachment Court on Monday, May 18, to prepare for the looming trial of Vice President Sara Duterte. In the letter dated May 15, Cayetano said the chamber had received the House of Representatives resolution containing the Articles of Impeachment and related annexes on May 13. “Pursuant to Rule I of the Senate Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials and consistent with its mandate under Article XI, Section 3 of the Constitution, the Senate has taken proper order of the impeachment and shall immediately proceed to its consideration,” the letter read. Cayetano said the Senate had communicated its action to the House through a letter addressed to Speaker Bojie Dy dated May 14. He said the Impeachment Court will convene at 3 p.m. The letter also reminded senators to…