Retired Supreme Court justices, acting as amici curiae, said the Impeachment Court would not be violating due process should it decide that the vote to convict in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial is not 16 as the Presiding Officer earlier ruled.
Sen. Francis Pangilinan asked the retired magistrates for comment about the contention of some parties that changing the vote threshold would be akin to changing the rules in the middle of the trial, affecting due process.
Retired Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban said there would be no violation because the Impeachment Court has yet to vote and the rule had yet to be implemented.
Since the court is discussing the issue now, it is anticipating the problem.
“Commendably, you are doing this meeting so that you cannot be accused of grave abuse of discretion,” Panganiban said.
He also said the senators can change their minds before the vote, which is why there is no grave abuse of discretion.
Retired Chief Justice Reynato Puno said saying the rule is being changed is “vague.”
Puno noted that there are many reasonable interpretations of the two-thirds threshold.
“Kung ang ginagawa po ay tinatalakay kung ano talaga iyong meaning noong particular rule na iyon, ay hindi po changing the rule iyon. Itinatama lang iyong dapat na maging interpretasyon ng rule, lalo na yung isang rule na maraming reasonable interpretations,” he said.
He also said there is no issue ripe for adjudication in the Supreme Court at this point.
“Dapat yung aakyat sa Supreme Court must demonstrate an injury. Paano mo ide-demonstrate yung injury na iyon kung wala pang final interpretation yung Senate. Wala pang applicability doon,” he said.
Retired SC Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna agreed with his colleagues.
Azcuna said the two-thirds vote denominator issue is a procedural matter that can be retroactive.
He said there is no vested right to a procedure.
“So even if the trial has already started, you are midway through the trial, you can change the interpretation of the presiding officer,” he said.
“I think there is no violation of due process. There is no vested right that has been violated because all these matters are procedural,” he added.
The three retired magistrates are among the amici curiae tapped by the Impeachment Court to share their insights on how to interpret the provision in the Constitution requiring a two-thirds vote of all members to convict.
Presiding Officer Sen. Francis Escudero earlier said it is 16 based on the 24 members of the Senate, but other senators questioned this, asking if members who are in hiding and detained should be counted in determining the two-thirds.