Stage fright?

Manila, Philippines – Yes, we will need to watch the impeachment trial to judge the senators — how impartial, objective and fair they can be — as we will need to be entertained by the high drama of a Chief Justice facing a litany of sins and crimes brought against him by 188 congresspersons (including, so the rumors say, a bar flunker or two – stand up and be counted!).

A reporter intimated a “twist” occurring as early as the first or second day of the trial, then withdrew his cocky pose by hastily issuing a disclaimer, “But don’t ask me who said so.”

Which seems to be the most titillating part of the trial. Who will say what with more conviction? What will stick, what won’t fly? Who can predict a likely scenario, let alone a probable outcome, when even the most “expert” lawyers have different interpretations of the law (and its vocabulary), the system and the procedure? The trial will teach us many things that we never thought we needed to know, such as mind-reading, leaving us to wonder how many senators, with the exception of the brilliant ones, feel as unlearned as we do. Stage fright? Panic attacks?

Like it or not, the senator-judges, even the unbrilliant ones, are about to write the most thrilling thriller, the most mysterious mystery, the most suspenseful cliffhanger – with no commercial interruptions.