VP Sara impeachment report sponsorship set for May 11

House Committee on Justice chairperson Representative Gerville Luistro is scheduled to sponsor the committee report and the resolution setting forth the Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte on Monday, May 11.

"Well, basically, the sponsorship is anchored on the committee report. So I will be speaking on everything that happened before the Justice Committee," Luistro said in an online interview.

"That would include the determination of form, substance, ground, and ultimately probable cause, the evidence that was presented by the complainants, and of course, the fact that this evidence remains unrebutted even to the date of the plenary vote because the respondent vice president never answered the allegation of offenses in the impeachment complaint," she added.

After Luistro's sponsorship speech, members of the House may interpellate her.

"Pagkatapos ng sponsorship speech ng chairman ng Committee on Justice, maaaring magbigay ng manifestation of support or magbigay ng manifestation for or against the committee report ang mga miyembro," House Senior Deputy Majority Leader and House Committee on Justice ex officio member Rep Lorenz Defensor said in a separate interview.

(After the sponsorship speech of the chairman of the Committee on Justice, the members may give a manifestation for or against the report.)

"No one has enlisted yet, but I understand some of the members are interested to show their support or express their dissent to the results or the decision of the Committee on Justice," Defensor added.

House Senior Deputy Minority Leader Leila de Lima today told reporters in an ambush interview that she is preparing for the interpellations by "just reviewing the committee report again, reviewing the committee report, reviewing the resolution setting forth the articles of impeachment."

After the voting on the committee report and the resolution setting forth the Articles of Impeachment, the House may elect the 11 impeachment prosecutors.

"I don't know if it will happen on Monday after the voting, kung magkaroon na nga ng voting or the next day na lang (if there will be voting or if it will happen the next day), the election, the formal election of those composing or constituting the panel of prosecutors," said De Lima, who is also a justice panel ex officio member.

The Rules on Impeachment state that "the voting on a resolution with the Articles of Impeachment of the Committee on Justice or a contrary resolution dismissing the impeachment complaint shall be by roll call, and the Secretary General shall record the vote of each Member."

A total of 106 votes are needed to transmit the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate.

In case there are more no votes or abstentions, Defensor said, "It doesn't affect the validity or the approval of the Articles of Impeachment because the Constitution simply requires that at least one-third of all the members of the House of Representatives, regardless of how many will say no or how many will abstain."

If the required number of votes is reached, the Articles of Impeachment will be endorsed to the Senate.

"It will be transmitted as soon as the Secretary General of the Senate is open to receive the Articles of Impeachment. Kunyari nag-adjourn kami, inumaga kami, the following day, Tuesday, 9 o'clock, pwede nang i-transmit yon ng Secretary General of the House so that the Secretary General of the Senate could receive the Articles of Impeachment," Defensor said. —LDF, GMA News