MALACA�ANG on Wednesday urged the Senate to listen to the call of business groups to follow the Constitution and adhere to the rule of law in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte.
In a press briefing, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said it was "alarming" that the business sector issued a warning that failure to uphold rule of law in Duterte's impeachment trial could affect investor confidence.
"Even the business sector is alarmed by what is happening in the Senate regarding the impeachment trial. And they would really not want to invest, our business investors will be alerted if there is an issue and the leader is accused of corruption, and it seems that other senators-judges are siding with her," Castro said.
Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro
"So, this is alarming because the country's economy is improving. This is contrary to what the vice president said that the economy is failing," she added.
The Palace official said the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, must perform its constitutional duty to reassure investors about the country's political stability.
"It would be regrettable if our economy would be affected just because of what is happening in the Senate," Castro said. "So, our only appeal to the Senate regarding the impeachment trial is not to hasten the ongoing impeachment trial as we will not interfere but to simply follow the Constitution and the rule of law."
The Makati Business Club, the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines and other private-sector groups earlier warned that the Senate's inaction on the impeachment process could erode investor confidence.
In separate statements, the groups said the refusal to hold a trial might hurt the country's ability to attract long-term foreign and domestic capital which is critical for job creation and economic growth.
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But Duterte pushed back against calls from several business groups, rejecting their argument that doing so would reassure investors about the country's commitment to the rule of law.
"Even with or without the impeachment, investor confidence is already gone, so they shouldn't make me the reason why the economy is doing poorly," Duterte said on Monday. "If they truly want accountability, then they should file cases in court."
The House of Representatives impeached the vice president on Feb. 5 on the grounds of betrayal of public trust, culpable violation of the Constitution, bribery, graft and corruption, and other high crimes.
Dismissal sought
On Wednesday, a spokesman for the Senate impeachment court, Reginald Tongol, said Duterte's defense team is expected to file a motion to dismiss the case against her, citing lack of jurisdiction.
Tongol issued this statement after lawyers for the vice president filed an "appearance ad cautelam" on Tuesday, a legal move that suggests further action is imminent.
Tongol said a lawyer employing this terminology often signals a tactic to challenge the case without addressing the specific allegations directly.
"As a lawyer, if the defense does not wish to respond to the detailed complaints against the vice president, the next logical step is to submit a motion to dismiss." He noted that in his experience, such filings frequently lead to requests for dismissal.
This anticipated motion aligns with a previous petition filed by Vice President Duterte in the Supreme Court, which challenges the legitimacy of the impeachment trial process against her.
Tongol also defended senators from accusations that they did not proceed with the impeachment trial "forthwith" as the Constitution requires, saying that the Supreme Court has already clarified the term as meaning "a reasonable time."
But the August Twenty One Movement said Filipinos are not to be fooled by the actions surrounding the impeachment of the vice president.
