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Senate Impeachment Court To Convene On May 18 After Cayetano Signs Letter
Photo credit: Senate PH
The Senate is set to formally convene as an impeachment court on May 18, 2026, following the receipt of the Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Sara Duterte.
Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano confirmed on Thursday, May 14, that he has signed a letter acknowledging receipt of the impeachment documents transmitted by the House of Representatives. The submission includes the Articles of Impeachment along with supporting annexes.
Under the schedule, the Senate sitting as an impeachment court is expected to convene at 3:00 p.m. on May 18, or as soon as practicable, depending on any procedural matters that may still be resolved. Both the prosecution panel from the House and the defense team representing Vice President Duterte will be formally summoned to appear before the chamber once it is constituted as an impeachment court.
Cayetano said the Senate has taken “proper order” of the impeachment in line with Rule I of the Senate Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials and consistent with Article XI, Section 3 of the 1987 Constitution, which grants the Senate the sole power to try and decide impeachment cases.
He also said the chamber will proceed with its constitutional duty without delay, and that the Senate Secretariat has been instructed to include the Articles of Impeachment in the Calendar for Ordinary Business for proper referral to the impeachment court.
A copy of the signed notice has also been formally furnished to Vice President Duterte, marking the official start of the Senate’s preparation phase for the impeachment trial.
The impeachment process in the Philippines begins in the House of Representatives, which has the exclusive power to initiate and approve articles of impeachment. Once transmitted to the Senate, the upper chamber transforms into an impeachment court, where senators act as judges presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court if the case proceeds to trial proper.
With the May 18 schedule now set, the Senate is expected to move into initial procedural steps before formal trial proceedings begin, in what could become one of the most closely watched political and constitutional proceedings in recent years.
Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano confirmed on Thursday, May 14, that he has signed a letter acknowledging receipt of the impeachment documents transmitted by the House of Representatives. The submission includes the Articles of Impeachment along with supporting annexes.
Under the schedule, the Senate sitting as an impeachment court is expected to convene at 3:00 p.m. on May 18, or as soon as practicable, depending on any procedural matters that may still be resolved. Both the prosecution panel from the House and the defense team representing Vice President Duterte will be formally summoned to appear before the chamber once it is constituted as an impeachment court.
Cayetano said the Senate has taken “proper order” of the impeachment in line with Rule I of the Senate Rules of Procedure on Impeachment Trials and consistent with Article XI, Section 3 of the 1987 Constitution, which grants the Senate the sole power to try and decide impeachment cases.
He also said the chamber will proceed with its constitutional duty without delay, and that the Senate Secretariat has been instructed to include the Articles of Impeachment in the Calendar for Ordinary Business for proper referral to the impeachment court.
A copy of the signed notice has also been formally furnished to Vice President Duterte, marking the official start of the Senate’s preparation phase for the impeachment trial.
The impeachment process in the Philippines begins in the House of Representatives, which has the exclusive power to initiate and approve articles of impeachment. Once transmitted to the Senate, the upper chamber transforms into an impeachment court, where senators act as judges presided over by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court if the case proceeds to trial proper.
With the May 18 schedule now set, the Senate is expected to move into initial procedural steps before formal trial proceedings begin, in what could become one of the most closely watched political and constitutional proceedings in recent years.
May 14, 2026
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