Once upon a time in the Philippines, something serious happened in the government. Some people in the House of Representatives (that’s a big group that helps make rules for the country) said that Vice President Sara Duterte did something wrong. So, they sent a list of these complaints—called Articles of Impeachment—to the Senate, another important group of leaders, to decide if they should have a trial to prove if she really did something bad.
👨⚖️ The Senate is like a judge in this kind of case. They’re supposed to have a special meeting called an impeachment trial to look at the facts and decide what’s true.
But something unexpected happened! On Tuesday night, 18 senators voted to send the case BACK to the House of Representatives instead of starting the trial. Only 5 senators voted no, meaning they wanted the trial to begin right away.
One of those 5 senators was Senator Risa Hontiveros. She was very disappointed that the trial didn’t happen yet, but she said she’s not giving up. In fact, she said her “fighting spirit” got even stronger!
“No matter what happened, the fight for justice continues,” she said.
🧑🤝🧑 Senator Risa and four other senators—Senators Pimentel, Binay, Poe, and Gatchalian—believe the trial should go on because it’s important to let both sides explain what really happened.
Gatchalian explained it like this:
“The trial is the right time for both sides to show their reasons, and people will better understand what’s going on.”
But many other senators—like Senators Bato, Padilla, Go, Marcos, Estrada, Cayetano, Tulfo, and more—thought it was better to send the case back first.
⚠️ Senator Hontiveros felt confused and said some of the words in the motion were tricky and unclear, which made her feel like something wasn’t right. She even used a big word called “gaslighting,” which means trying to confuse or mislead people on purpose.
📜 The Constitution—the country’s rulebook—says that if the House sends impeachment articles to the Senate, the Senate must start the trial right away. That’s why some senators, like Gatchalian, said returning the papers doesn’t follow the rules.
💭 On the other side, Senator Tolentino argued that this case started during the 19th Congress, and since a new group called the 20th Congress is starting soon, the case can’t continue. He said some words like “forthwith” (which means “right away”) were meant only for the old group, not the new one.
So now, people are wondering: Will the impeachment case start again in the 20th Congress? Or is it already over?
🤔 The answer is not clear yet. Some say the trial could still happen later. Others believe it might already be too late.
But one thing’s for sure: Senator Risa Hontiveros and her group are not giving up. They want the truth to come out, no matter how hard the fight gets.
And just like in stories where heroes don’t give up, this one isn’t over yet.
