Senate mulls extended hours in Corona trial

Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile . JUNNY ROY / SENATE POOL

MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said Monday that they were looking to extend the daily impeachment proceedings “as long as the stamina of both panels will be able to sustain it.”

Enrile said however that they have not yet decided on the proposed extension of the proceedings up to 10 p.m.

“Gusto namin matapos ito [we want to finish this], we will not go beyond the 31st of May,” Enrile said before the resumption of proceedings.

“If they are not able do it, then they tell [the senate], but I am able do it,” he said.

He said that he was not rushing the impeachment trial, but “the country requires that we must settle this case one way or the other.”

When asked what he would do if the panels complain about the extended hearing hours he said “that’s their problem.”

The defense said that they would try to accommodate the extended hearing hours if ever it would be implemented.

“If the senators feel that this is something worth proposing then of course we will have to consider it carefully,” defense counsel Jose Roy III said.

He said that they have discussed it and they thought that “it would be very difficulty for us.”

“Let’s not even talk about whether or not its a fair situation,” Roy said, referring to the fact that the prosecution panel was not subjected to the same extended hours.

“But we will do everything we can to help the court with this end of May target,” he said.

Defense panel spokesperson Tranquil Salvador said that they thought the extended proceedings might be too heavy for the older members of the Senate and of both panels.

“At the same time, the quality of the answers of witnesses might be affected. They might get tired and sleepy or hungry,” Salvador said.

He added that the attention of the television viewers who wanted to follow the proceedings might wane due to the long hours.

“This will become like a marathon hearing,” he said. “The old schedule of up to 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. was good enough.”

“We don’t want to make it look like we are afraid of the 10 p.m. extension,” Salvador said. “We are thinking of the physical fitness and mental fitness of everyone.”

He said they believed they could finish presenting their defense befor the end of the month even without the extended hours.

He said that what he was not sure of was how long the defense would hold their cross examinations and how long the senator-judges would ask questions.

The actual proceedings could be finished before the end of May “but the actual verdict could take longer,” Salvador said.

The prosecution could also ask for a rebuttal, which would mean that the proceedings would reach up to June, he said.