Easier said than done

President Bongbong Marcos Jr. would like to put all politics aside and focus on developmental, healthcare, education, agriculture, and food supply issues. These are what he wants to focus on in the next three years of his term as chief executive. With the midterm elections done, he wants to get back to being president.

That may be easier said than done, especially with the looming impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte. With the newly-elected senators eventually becoming judges in the impeachment trial, many are already sizing up her chances of either an acquittal or a guilty verdict. Among the newly-elected senators, I can count at least four staunch supporters of the Duterte family. She only needs nine senators on her side to be acquitted, should the impeachment trial push through. From the other 12 senators, there are obvious Duterte sycophants.

Which is probably the reason she is again showing her true form. Knowing what’s ahead for her, she wants a “bloodbath” in her impeachment trial. It is amazing that the word “blood” frequently comes up whenever any member of the Duterte family speaks. Such an obsession with blood. Sara Duterte is also facing cases of inciting to sedition and grave threat after her expletive and assassination rant against the first family.

The House of Representatives is getting ready as well. I believe they have already formed a prosecution panel to impeach the vice president. Vocal critics of the Dutertes, like Chel Diokno and Leila de Lima, are part of that panel. Remember, de Lima was imprisoned by former president Rodrigo Duterte for six years for trumped-up drug-related charges. She was acquitted of all charges, but a new development with the Court of Appeals might divide her focus. Whether this is intentional or not, I believe her resolve to be part of the prosecution team is firm.

The impeachment trial is tentatively set for July 30. I’m not sure if the president can focus on other issues once the trial begins. A lot is at stake, particularly the 2028 elections. Many are saying that the election is Sara Duterte’s to lose. The prosecution panel is confident, especially with all the evidence it has. But as I said, the senators will judge the case. And as with all politics in the country, this is a numbers game.