Impeachment Court expects VP’s camp to seek early dismissal

Metro Manila, Philippines - The Senate Impeachment Court sees a high probability that Vice President Sara Duterte’s camp will file a motion to dismiss the impeachment case by next week, its spokesperson said on Wednesday, June 18.

Lawyer Regie Tongol, spokesperson for the Senate Impeachment Court, said the move is the expected strategy from the defense after it filed an ad cautelam formal entry of appearance on Monday.

“Ad cautelam, ibig sabihin sa mga abogado hindi pa namin nire-recognize talaga yung hurisdiksyon. Pina-file lang namin ito para lang to comply and para di namin maiwaive nyung mga dapat gawin,” Tongol said in a press conference.

[Translation: Ad cautelam means, in legal practice, we are not yet recognizing the court’s jurisdiction. We’re filing this purely to comply, and to avoid waiving any rights or procedural steps.]

“Yun ang aksyon na ine-expect natin from the defense, by filing an ad cautelam appearance na magfa-file sila ng either answer with affirmative defense questioning the jurisdiction or a motion to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction,” he explained.

[Translation: That’s the action we expect from the defense — by filing an ad cautelam appearance, they are likely to follow it with either an answer with affirmative defenses questioning the court’s jurisdiction, or a motion to dismiss the case for lack of jurisdiction.]

“Medyo maataas ang posibilidad na ganoon based on experience….

Pag nagfile ka ang ad cautelam alam mo na kaagad na ‘yun ‘yung possible tactic ng depensa,” he added.

[Translation: There’s a high probability that this will be the defense’s tactic, based on past experience. When a party files an ad cautelam, it usually signals that this is the direction they’re taking.]

He said this strategy is also consistent with the Vice President’s petition before the Supreme Court seeking to halt the impeachment proceedings.

On June 11, the Impeachment Court issued a summons directing Duterte to respond to the charges outlined in the Articles of Impeachment, giving her 10 days—or until June 23—to file a response. Tongol said the Vice President may submit the motion within that period.

However, the motion will only be addressed once the trial begins under the 20th Congress, which convenes in July, Tongol said.

”Magkakaroon nanaman tayo ng diskusyon kung pwede ba o hindi pwedeng i-dismiss ang isang Articles of Impeachment,” Tongol said.

[Translation: We will have another discussion whether the Articles of Impeachment can or cannot be dismissed.]