Senators Eye Revisiting 16-Vote Threshold for Sara Duterte Impeachment Conviction

Some senators want to revisit the 16-vote threshold to convict Vice President Sara Duterte in her impeachment trial, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said Thursday. In a press conference, the Senate Majority Leader said that some of his colleagues have questioned the threshold, given that some senator-judges could not attend the ongoing trial. "There were some colleagues who would like to revisit the threshold. Because at that time, wala pa ‘yung mga nawawalang senador. Ngayon kasi, may mga nasa kulungan at isa at-large, pugante-at-large,” he said. (Some colleagues would like to revisit the threshold. Because at that time when the ruling was made, there were no missing senators. Now, some are in jail, and one is a fugitive at-large.) When the impeachment trial began on July 6, presiding officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero ruled that 16 affirmative votes of senator-judges are required to convict Duterte in her trial. Citing the Constitution, Escudero said that no person shall be convicted in an impeachment trial without the concurrence of two-thirds of all the members of the Senate. And with the Senate composed of 24 members, Escudero said a literal interpretation of the constitutional provision means conviction requires at least 16 affirmative votes. Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta are detained over separate plunder charges, while Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa is in hiding amid an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court. Senator Loren Legarda, meanwhile, has not been attending the trial for weeks now due to health concerns. Zubiri explained that the best way to address concerns about the voting threshold is “to debate about it and seek a ruling from the presiding officer.” “It may come up sooner or later. That, I can divulge. There are some questions with some senators on the threshold. So that issue has to be answered soon enough by the presiding officer,” he added. Impeachment court spokesperson Atty. Regie Tongol previously said that the 16-vote threshold for convicting the Vice President is already “set in stone” unless the matter is raised before the Supreme Court. -NB, GMA News