Senate Impeachment Court spokesperson Regie Tongol said it has yet to receive official notice of the Supreme Court petitions filed questioning its interpretation of the two-thirds vote required to convict in Vice President Sara Duterte’s trial, but it is ready to defend its prerogatives.
In a statement, Tongol said the Impeachment Court is taking note of the media reports on the petitions filed by former Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez and lawyer Ernesto Francisco Jr.
“Should the High Court give due course to these petitions and require the Senate’s comment, its legal counsel, the Office of the Solicitor General, is fully prepared to defend the constitutional prerogatives and procedural rulings of the Impeachment Court,” he said.
He also said the proceedings of the Impeachment Court would continue in the absence of any temporary restraining order from the Supreme Court.
The Impeachment Court has ruled that only the senators who can legally and factually participate in the proceedings would be counted when determining the two-thirds vote required to convict in Duterte’s trial.
Rodriguez asked the Supreme Court to stop the impeachment proceedings, contending that the constitutional requirement of a two-thirds vote must be based on the 24 total members of the Senate.
He argued that the Constitution does not say that the two-thirds requirement should be based on senators who are present or capable of participating.
Francisco, for his part, said senators cannot make their own interpretation of the Constitution, and warned that allowing them to do this is dangerous.
The Supreme Court should settle the issue once and for all, he said.