Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero rejected calls to immediately start the impeachment trial against Vice President Sara Duterte.

This comes in response to the Bayan Muna group's position paper submitted to the Senate, which called for the Senate to immediately convene as an Impeachment Court.

Escudero reiterated that they will not rush the convening of the Senate as an Impeachment Court while the chamber is on recess, as it would be considered illegal to do so at this time.

He also voiced his confusion over the urgency expressed by different groups to begin the impeachment, noting that the impeachment complaints had taken two months to be processed in the House of Representatives.

He also stated that the Senate will defer to the Office of the Solicitor General to address the Supreme Court’s order related to the petition urging the Senate to convene for Vice President Duterte's impeachment trial.

Escudero noted that the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), as the government's legal representative, will be responsible for responding to the Petition for Mandamus filed in the Supreme Court, not the Senate.

"Balewala sa akin at hindi bale sa akin ang anumang opinyon o suhestiyon o pagtulak ng mga partisano pabor o kontra sa impeachment, pabor o kontra kay VP Sara,” said Escudero.

Along with Bayan Muna, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Koko Pimentel III lso sent a letter to Senate President Escudero, asking for the immediate commencement of the impeachment proceedings.

In his letter, Pimentel argued that the Senate should not postpone the impeachment process against Duterte, emphasizing that it is the chamber's constitutional duty to address the issue without delay.

Escudero previously stated that the impeachment proceedings would begin in June, and he sees no issue with it carrying over into the 20th Congress, which will commence in July 2025.