The Senate impeachment court’s new way of counting votes cuts both ways, House lead prosecutor Gerville Luistro said Thursday. A smaller pool of senator-judges reduces the votes needed to convict Vice President Sara Duterte, and it also reduces the votes her camp needs to walk free.
“By giving clarity to the denominator, what is lowered is not only the number for conviction but also the number for acquittal. That is a two-way consequence. If 20 is the denominator, conviction requires 14. But remember, acquittal needs only seven [votes with 20 as denominator],” the Batangas representative told reporters.
With all 24 senators counted, 16 votes would be required to convict, while nine would be enough to acquit. “Mali pong sabihin na conviction vote lang ang bumaba sa pagkat kasabay pung bumaba ang acquital vote,” Luistro said.
Under the ruling, the two-thirds requirement is now computed only from senators who are “legally and factually participating” in the trial. Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo moved for the change after four of his colleagues stopped taking part in the proceedings.
Two of the four are in detention. Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta face plunder and related charges. Estrada’s case involves an alleged P573 million in flood control funds, and Marcoleta’s involves P75 million in undeclared campaign donations. Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa has gone into hiding as an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, tied to deaths in the Rodrigo Duterte administration’s drug war, remains in force. Senator Loren Legarda is abroad on extended medical leave for a lung ailment.
Luistro rejected the view that the court had watered down the constitutional standard. In her view, “two-thirds is two-thirds,” and the ruling only settled a single interpretive question. “What the impeachment court made clear is the phrase all members of the Senate, whether the same pertains to all 24 or whether pertains to all who are legally and factually qualified only,” she said.
She welcomed the ruling as long overdue. “Sa wakas, nagkaroon na ng kaliwanagan itong matagal ng discussion ng sambayanang Pilipino concerning the threshold vote. Ang kapangyarihan ng Senado o ng Impeachment Court na bigyan ng kaliwanagan ang threshold vote ay ayon din sa kanilang exclusive power to try and decide all impeachment cases,” Luistro said. “I think this is very significant as we continue the impeachment trial. Kasi mas mahirap din po na hanggang sa oras na ito ay wala pang kaliwanagan.”
Luistro cautioned against reading the procedural vote as a signal of the final outcome. “Their (Senator judges) position on the threshold vote does not necessarily show there would be position on the verdict of this impeachment trial. I believe the position of the Senator judges depends on the question confronting them,” she said.
She added that much of the case remains to be heard. “Besides, this is far from over. We are not even done with [presentation of evidence for unexplained wealth. There’s still bribery, and the turn of the defense to present their evidence,” Luistro said.
Fellow prosecutor Terry Ridon said the change does not reduce the prosecution’s burden. “The burden continues for the prosecution to deliver on the evidence and we are committed to do that, regardless of the threshold,” Ridon said.
Article XI, Section 3(6) of the 1987 Constitution gives the Senate the sole power to try and decide impeachment cases. The same provision requires the concurrence of two-thirds of all the members of the Senate for a conviction, but it does not specify a number.
