‘The Senate has too often circled the wagons. Sotto must prove that this one will be different.’
NEW Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III inherits a chamber in crisis — from the farce impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte to the swelling flood-control scandal.
His leadership will decide if the Senate redeems itself or sinks further into disrepute.
The Constitution is unambiguous: once the House impeaches, the Senate must try the case “forthwith.”
Under then–Senate President Chiz Escudero, the chamber instead sent the Articles of Impeachment back to the House — a maneuver critics decried as a betrayal of duty.
What made the proceedings even more repulsive was the Supreme Court’s monkeywrench, declaring the impeachment trial “unconstitutional.” It emboldened pro-Duterte senators to archive the articles with the false wisdom of finality. Critics called the ruling a perversion of the Constitution.
That misstep, compounded by corruption claims now staining senators themselves, leaves Sotto with one stark mandate: restore credibility by enforcing the rules without bias.
History does not flatter the institution. The Senate has never expelled one of its own. It only carried out court-ordered suspensions during the pork-barrel scandal of 2014, when senators faced plunder indictments.
But it stripped then-Sen. Leila de Lima of her committee chair in 2016. Those hearings, launched after she investigated the “war on drugs,” led to her ouster from the Justice and Human Rights panel, then to trumped-up allegations of drug trade involvement and her arrest. Widely seen as persecution, those charges collapsed years later. After six years in detention, De Lima was acquitted.
The Senate has too often circled the wagons. Sotto must prove that this Senate will be different under his helm.
The impeachment question lingers. The Supreme Court has voided the House’s case against Duterte, but the constitutional duty remains. When a valid complaint next reaches the Senate, will Sotto ensure the trial proceeds forthwith — or will delay and deflection return?
The deeper test is internal. Senators Jinggoy Estrada, Joel Villanueva, and Bong Go have all been named or linked in testimony on flood-control contracts. The chamber can either shield colleagues and perpetuate impunity, or uphold accountability and show the public that no one is above the law.
We trust that under Sotto, and with Sen. Panfilo Lacson now steering the Blue Ribbon Committee, the Senate can still do what is right. But the nation has learned not to confuse promises with results.
In the end, this is not about one impeachment, one scandal, or one Senate President. It is about whether the Senate still has the moral ground to speak for the people.
The law abhors delay. And delay denies not only the reckoning the accused must face, but the truth an entire nation deserves.
