The House prosecution panel is weighing measures to make the impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Z. Duterte more accessible to the public, including the possible use of Filipino during proceedings and translation of updates into major regional languages.
House Committee on Justice chairperson and lead prosecutor Rep. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro said prosecutors intend to raise the proposal during the June 18 pretrial conference, where both the prosecution and defense may be asked to consider the use of Filipino whenever practicable.
Luistro said the move is aimed at making the constitutional process more understandable to ordinary Filipinos, even as she acknowledged that certain legal and technical terms may still require English.
“It is our intention na lahat ng mangyayari (all developments) during the impeachment trial should be understandable on the part of the ordinary Filipinos,” Luistro said.
She added that the panel is also studying the possibility of providing translations of trial updates into major regional languages to broaden public access to information as proceedings unfold.
“Sana habang nagtra-trial, meron tayong translation (As the trial goes on, we hope to have a translation) to as many dialects as possible in order to make sure that the entire Philippine nation is on the same page,” she said.
Luistro emphasized that impeachment is a constitutional mechanism tied to public accountability and should not be confined to legal circles.
“After all, this is a constitutional process. We want the entire nation to walk with us as we start, continue, and conclude the impeachment trial,” she said.
House impeachment spokesperson and Lanao del Sur Rep. Zia Alonto Adiong said discussions are also ongoing with the communications team on how to simplify the presentation of trial-related information for the public.
He said the goal is to ensure citizens can better follow the evidence and arguments presented before the impeachment court.
“Matagal na po ito pinag-usapan at deserve po nila malaman ang katotohanan (This has been discussed for a while now, and the people deserve to know the truth),” Adiong said.
The Senate impeachment court is set to hold its pretrial conference on June 18, while the trial proper is scheduled to begin on July 6.
Photo courtesy of Sara Duterte / Facebook
Comments