MANILA, Philippines — Members and allies of the House prosecution panel are advocating for a reduced vote requirement to convict Vice President Sara Duterte, contending that the calculation must account for the current functional membership of the Senate.
The Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, is scheduled to deliberate on the matter during scheduled oral arguments on September 23.
The stance is supported by a coalition of prosecutors and legislative allies, including Manila 3rd District Representative Joel Chua, private prosecutor Atty. Benjamin “Jay” Tolosa Jr., former Surigao del Norte 2nd District Representative Robert Ace Barbers, Manila 6th District Representative Benny Abante, and House Deputy Speaker and Iloilo 1st District Representative Janette Garin.
At the heart of the prosecution’s argument is that only 20 out of the 24 elected senators are presently in a position to legally and physically perform their duties as senator-judges.
While the 1987 Constitution mandates a two-thirds vote of all Senate members for conviction—which translates to 16 votes under a full 24-member chamber—the prosecution contends that legal precedents support adjusting the baseline.
Representative Chua pointed to historical legal precedents to support modifying the baseline when members are prevented from fulfilling their official roles.
”Ang threshold naman na pinag-uusapan natin ngayon, since time immemorial, ang naging opinion na ng prosecution ay dapat itong ibaba,” Chua said.
He referenced the Supreme Court ruling in People v. Maceda, which established that individuals placed under detention—whether under preventive custody or awaiting final judgment—are legally restricted from practicing their profession or exercising the duties of public office.
”Ibig sabihin habang sila ay nakakulong, hindi puwedeng mag-exercise ng kanilang profession. Sinasabi din ng decision na ito na ito ay natural consequence of arrest and detention,” Chua explained.
Chua added that this legal principle aligns with provisions under the Anti-Plunder Law, which automatically suspend detained public officials from office.
Currently, Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta are held in detention over plunder charges. Additionally, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa has remained out of public view since May following the confirmation of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court, while Senator Loren Legarda is out of the country on extended medical leave.
Chua also underscored the necessity of physical presence during the trial, arguing that personal observation of witness testimony is critical to a fair verdict.
”There are also many decisions of the court stating it is better if the judge sees the demeanor of the witnesses while they are being cross-examined, because only then can the judge determine whether the witness is telling the truth or not,” Chua stated.
”Paano sila makakapag-desisyon ng tama kung hindi naman nila nakikita personally ang testigo habang ito ay dina-direct or kino-cross ng prosecution at ng defense?” he added.
Echoing these concerns, Barbers and Abante maintained that active participation in trial proceedings should be a prerequisite for participating in the final judgment.
”Hindi ako abogado pero para sa akin naniniwala ako na siguro dapat ang tingnan, yung gawing denominator, yung mga palaging nag-a-attend at yung talagang informed dito sa usapin ng paglilitis na ito,” Barbers noted.
Barbers questioned the fairness of allowing senator-judges who failed to observe trial proceedings to take part in the eventual vote on the Vice President’s fate.