A fresh oath-taking will likely be required once the Senate sits as an impeachment court, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian indicated Thursday, saying he intends to check the proper steps with court officials before the proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte get underway.
Pressed at a press conference on whether a new swearing-in would be needed when the court formally opens, Gatchalian said the procedural details still had to be confirmed. “I have to consult with the clerk of court kung ano ang procedures (what the procedures are), definitely pagbukas kailangan mag-oath (when the trial opens, we need to take an oath),” he said.
His remarks come after a turn in the Senate’s internal power struggle. Gatchalian was installed as Senate president pro tempore on Wednesday, June 3, a move that placed him in the role of acting Senate president and, by extension, the official expected to oversee Duterte’s trial. The shift was made possible when Senator Francis Escudero appeared on the floor, giving the chamber the numbers it needed to act after the body had stalled for two consecutive days. He replaced Senator Loren Legarda in the pro tempore post.
The Senate had been deadlocked amid a boycott tied to Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s bloc, which stopped attending plenary sessions. That absence, according to the chamber’s new leadership, had pushed the institution to the edge of failing its constitutional obligations. Gatchalian, presiding when the session opened, framed the quorum question around the senators over whom the chamber could exercise jurisdiction rather than the full roster.
The leadership change carries weight because whoever heads the Senate presides over the impeachment proceedings. The trial of Duterte had been calendared to begin July 6, 2026. She faces charges that include the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds, questionable entries in her statements of assets, liabilities and net worth, unexplained wealth, and threats directed at President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Backers of the realignment have argued that an impartial presiding officer protects both the accused and the prosecution. Gatchalian himself has previously stressed fairness and neutrality as guiding principles for anyone running the trial, pointing to his record steering the chamber’s finance committee through the budget deliberations.
