Impeachment prosecutor opposes remote participation in trial

House impeachment prosecutor Lordan Suan said the participation of senators via remote means in the Senate proceedings or the impeachment trial should not be allowed.

“I believe that online voting should not be the norm in proceedings of this magnitude. Impeachment is one of the most serious proceedings in our government. And an impeachment proceeding is, it's one of the grievous constitutional responsibilities entrusted to public officials, including congressmen and senators,” Suan said in an online interview.

“So this is not just ordinary legislation where one can appear through Zoom, or committee hearings. Impeachment is a process that, for me, demands full presence, full attention, and of course, full accountability,” the legislator from Cagayan de Oro City 1st district added.

Suan said the public deserves to see “their public officials physically present during proceedings, especially this proceeding, this impeachment proceeding that may shape the nation's democratic institutions for the next several decades.”

Suan, however, said it is a matter that is for the Senate to decide.

“It is going to concern the conduct of the (prosecution) panel pero we trust that the Senate will decide based on the Constitution. That's not really within our province, the inner workings in the Senate. We should not meddle," he said.

He said the House prosecution panel remains focused on preparations for the trial.

“Kailangan po natin bumalik sa Constitution, sa proper na process, and of course, sa evidence. Doon lang po muna kami mag-focus (We have to go back to the Constitution, the proper process, the pieces of evidence; this is where we will focus),” he said. —LDF, GMA News