00:00Some law experts discussed whether the impeachment trial should be held immediately
00:06and if the Supreme Court has a jurisdiction on the issue of a forum.
00:10Among them, one of the authors of the Constitution and a former Supreme Court Associate Justice
00:17who made a decision on another impeachment issue, Mark Salazar.
00:22In the forum of the UP College of Law, the law experts discussed the meaning of the Constitution
00:32that the trial by Senate shall forthwith proceed if an impeachment complaint is filed against them.
00:39They focused on the meaning of the word forthwith or whether the trial should start immediately.
00:46One of the framers of the Constitution said,
00:50In ordinary meaning, as constitutionally interpreted, it means right away.
00:58It means immediately.
01:00There is no need to rush.
01:03There is no need to rush.
01:05Do it immediately.
01:07But if the Congress is recessed, like the current situation,
01:11If the Senate is not in session as it is today,
01:15this impeachment court cannot constitute itself
01:18because the reference of the impeachment complaint is to the Senate.
01:22Therefore, the Senate, in a formal session, will refer this to the impeachment court.
01:28The President can even call a special session so that the impeachment trial can take place.
01:34But the former Supreme Court Associate Justice Conchita Carpio Morales said,
01:39there cannot be a special session for impeachment.
01:43Impeachment is not included among the reasons why a special session can be conducted.
01:58My conclusion is that no impeachment proceedings or impeachment trial cannot be conducted during recess.
02:11Even if the current Senate starts the impeachment trial,
02:15can they continue it if the composition of the Senate is different after the election?
02:21In 1986, Constitutional Commission Member Rene Sarmiento
02:26continued the work of the current impeachment court, which is now separated from the Senate.
02:32Outside of legislation, it has a continuing function.
02:38It could be convening as a canvassing board.
02:42It could even be serving as an impeachment court.
02:47Because the Supreme Court has already filed the visa,
02:50I asked if the Supreme Court can be aware of the legislative balance of the government.
02:57There was a former impeachment complaint filed by the Supreme Court in 2003
03:02against the then Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr.
03:06The Supreme Court said, yes, they have a jurisdiction on the issue.
03:36Retired Associate Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales is the opponent of the Supreme Court's decision.
03:45In the decision, the Constitutional Commission also discussed the provision
03:49that an impeachment proceeding could be initiated against an official within a year.
03:55This one-year rule is one of the points of the petition of Vice President Sara Duterte to the Supreme Court
04:02to stop her impeachment trial.
04:05There were three former impeachment complaints filed against the Vice President within a few months.
04:11But in the decision of the Supreme Court,
04:14it said that the initiation of an impeachment proceeding is the filing of an impeachment complaint
04:20and its referral to the House Committee on Justice.
04:24It should be noted that the former impeachment complaints were not referred to the committee.
04:29For GMA Integrated News, Mark Salazar.
04:33Anchored 24 hours.
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