The Senate on Monday night voted unanimously to refer the verified impeachment complaint against Vice President Sara Duterte to the committee on rules.

Sen. Joel Villanueva made the motion for the referral after senators discussed during a suspension of the session Senator Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III's motions calling for, among other things, the convening of the Senate as an impeachment court.

Villanueva made a second motion on Senate President Francis "Chiz" Escudero taking his oath as the impeachment court's presiding officer.

Sen. Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa asked a question on whether the senators taking their oaths as senator-judges would mean the convening of the impeachment court. The senators again suspended the session to further discuss the issue.

“If it follows that all the members of this body have taken their oath, it would automatically trigger the convening of the impeachment court; therefore, I move that we take our oath on the 11th as originally scheduled,” Dela Rosa said.

“If you will say that it triggers (the convening of the impeachment court), then I would reject your motion,” he added.

Senator Risa Hontiveros clarified that the Senate will not convene as an impeachment court but Escudero takes his oath Monday evening, while the rest of the senators take theirs tomorrow.

“Mapagbigay ang minority, nakipag-usap kami sa inyong lahat sa pamamagitan ng pamunuan at pumayag kami na irefer muna sa committee on rules. Ipasaibang araw ang panunumpa natin lahat before the presiding officer, pero siya ay manumpa bilang presiding officer ngayong gabi,” Hontiveros explained.

“There is no harm na mag convene na ang korte bukas dahil wala panggagawin ang korte. Sa Miyerkules pa po,” she added.

(There is no harm in convening as a court tomorrow because the court will not do anything yet. We will start on Wednesday.)

“If we want practice to follow practice, let us convene the court and take our oath, and siguro ang good faith agreement natin let that be the only agenda of the court on Tuesday… and sa Wednesday na yung actual work,” Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III said.

(If we want practice to follow practice, let us convene the court and take our oath, and let our good faith agreement be that that be the only agenda of the court on Tuesday and schedule the actual work on Wednesday.)

–NB, GMA Integrated News

Source: GMA Network.