Senator-Judge Alan Peter Cayetano on Wednesday reminded his fellow senator-judges that while the Prosecution and the Defense are expected to advocate for their respective positions in the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte, the responsibility of ensuring a fair impeachment trial ultimately rests with the Senate.
“Ang importante, hindi lang ang resulta ngunit pati ang proseso,” Cayetano said during his manifestation on the ninth day of the trial on July 22, 2026, ahead of the Senate’s suspension of the impeachment trial for the President’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) break on Monday, July 27.
Cayetano acknowledged the debates over technicalities and what constitutes relevant evidence as he commended both the Prosecution and the Defense for carrying out their respective roles.
“Much has been said about technicalities. Merong relevant, merong irrelevant. So, I just want the Prosecution and Defense to know because we’re gonna go on a short break… Both sides, you’re doing a good job. Both Prosecution and Defense. Your job is to prosecute and defend,” he said.
But the Minority Leader emphasized that while both camps are expected to vigorously prosecute and defend their respective positions, it is the senator-judges who bear the responsibility of ensuring that the impeachment proceedings remain fair and faithful to due process.
“The onus is on us. May tinatawag na ‘defense senator-judge’ at ‘prosecution senator-judge.’ Wala pa akong [na-witness na] impeachment [trial] dito na hindi nangyari ‘yan,” Cayetano said.
Cayetano acknowledged that disagreements and procedural debates are inevitable in a democracy, but stressed that these should never come at the expense of a fair and credible impeachment process.
“I always say democracy is messy. If we want a dictatorship, it’s less messy, but it’s a dictatorship,” he said.