Impeachment Court says proceedings ‘constitutionally bulletproof’ after SC junks petitions

September 30, 2026

By ABOGADO.COM.PH Staff

The Senate Impeachment Court said the Supreme Court’s junking, on procedural grounds, of the petitions challenging its interpretation of the two-thirds vote to convict protects its independence and proceedings.

The SC tossed out the petitions filed by former Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez, Berteni Cataluña Causing and lawyer Ernesto Francisco Jr. due to lack of standing and prematurity.

“The Supreme Court’s prompt dismissal of these cases on procedural grounds—specifically lack of standing and prematurity—effectively confirms the interpretations and proceedings of the Senate Impeachment Court are constitutionally bulletproof,” Impeachment Court spokesperson Regie Tongol said in a statement.

Tongol said the dismissal of the petitions supports the Impeachment Court’s independence and protects it from interference.

“By junking these challenges, the Highest Court has drawn a definitive firewall around the independence of the Senate as an Impeachment Court, confirming that its proceedings cannot be held hostage by premature judicial meddling or collateral litigation. The Impeachment Court’s September 23 ruling stands undisturbed and shall continue to perform its constitutional mandate to solely try and decide the impeachment case before it without unnecessary stalling or external distractions,” he said.

The petitions questioned the Impeachment Court’s interpretation that the two-thirds vote to convict in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial would be based on the number of senators who are legally and factually capable of participating in the vote, not necessarily all 24 members.

This interpretation means that senators who are detained or in hiding may not be counted when computing the two-thirds vote.