Lawmaker-prosecutors to convene soon for impeachment trial – Chua

Metro Manila, Philippines – The 11 lawmaker-prosecutors in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte will convene "anytime soon," said Manila 3rd District Rep. Joel Chua, House committee on good government chairperson .

In an interview on “The Newsmaker” on NewsWatch Plus, Chua said the prosecutors need to discuss their strategy.

"I think anytime soon yan. Anytime soon. Maybe within the week or next week," said Chua.

"We will have to convene para at least malaman po natin kung ano po yung tatahakin po namin na diskarte po dito po sa impeachment trial," he added.

[Translation: We will have to convene so we can determine the approach we will take in this impeachment trial]

Chua noted that the composition of the lawmaker-prosecutors could change depending on the outcome of the midterm elections in May.

The House of Representatives impeached Duterte on Wednesday, Feb. 5, the last session day before Congress adjourned for a four-month election break.

No railroading

Chua refuted claims by Davao Rep. Paolo Duterte that the impeachment process was rushed or manipulated.

"This is not the first time that this happened. And in fact, ito po ang House action. Ito po yung ginawa po namin. And that's not naman po ito sa rules namin. So, wala naman po ang railroading dito," said Chua.

[Translation: This is not the first time this has happened. In fact, this is the action taken by the House. This is what we did, and it is within our rules. So, there was no railroading here.]

"In fact, it was also done during the impeachment of former President Joseph Estrada. Ganito rin po yung process na ginawa. Supported by more than one-third of the congressmen," he added.

[Translation: In fact, the same process was followed during the impeachment of former President Joseph Estrada. It was supported by more than one-third of the congressmen.]