THE Senate Impeachment Court voted Wednesday to adjust the formula for determining the two‑thirds vote required to convict Vice President Sara Duterte, basing the calculation on the number of senator‑judges who are legally and factually capable of participating in the proceedings.
The decision effectively supersedes the July 6 ruling by Presiding Officer Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero, which had fixed the threshold at 16 votes — two‑thirds of the full 24‑member Senate. Thirteen senator‑judges backed the motion filed by Senator‑judge Erwin Tulfo, who sought reconsideration after several colleagues became unavailable to take part in the trial.
Four senators are currently unable to participate: Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta are detained on plunder charges; Senator Loren Legarda is on extended medical leave abroad; and Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa has been absent with an outstanding International Criminal Court arrest warrant. The 13 who voted in favor represented a broad cross‑section, with only Senator Mark Villar coming from the minority bloc. Presiding Officer Escudero cast the sole “no” vote, while six other senators did not participate in the balloting.
Under the new framework, the required number of votes will be calculated from the reduced pool of eligible members, with any fractional result rounded up to the next whole number. Escudero emphasized that this ruling applies only to the current impeachment trial and will not serve as a binding precedent for future proceedings. “This is for this occasion only. It shall not constitute a binding precedent in any future impeachment proceedings,” he stated, noting that impeachment courts do not operate under the principle of stare decisis.
The revision follows differing legal perspectives from invited constitutional experts. Three retired Supreme Court Chief Justices — Artemio Panganiban, Reynato Puno, and Hilario Davide Jr. — recommended tying the threshold to active participants, while Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna, a framer of the 1987 Constitution, maintained that “all the Members of the Senate” refers to the full chamber membership, requiring 16 votes to convict. The court’s ruling now settles the standard for this trial, though the final number needed will depend on how many senator‑judges remain eligible when the vote is called.
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