Sara Duterte: Voting threshold for impeachment already set in Constitution

Vice President Sara Duterte on Friday said the voting threshold for conviction in impeachment has already been set in the Constitution amid the trial against her.

In an ambush interview, Duterte said there was no need to discuss the issue of the required number of votes.

“'Yung threshold naman, nadesisyunan na 'yun sa unang-una pa lang na susundin ang Konstitusyon,” Duterte said, answering questions from reporters after the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 98 deferred her arraignment.

(The threshold was already decided from the very beginning, that the Constitution will be followed.)

“So ibig sabihin, ngayon na nagbago 'yung usapan, ibig sabihin ay babaguhin nila. Bakit pa ba natin pag-uusapan 'yun kung hindi naman babaguhin, 'di ba?” she added.

(So that means, now the conversation has changed, it means they will change it. Why are we even talking about it if it’s not going to be changed, right?)

Senator Erwin Tulfo earlier questioned how the 16-vote threshold for conviction could be reached if not all senators consistently attend the impeachment proceedings.

Senator JV Ejercito and Senator Raffy Tulfo also said they would prefer for the Supreme Court to resolve the matter.

The Senate impeachment court is set to hold a hearing with amici curiae on September 23 to consult constitutional experts on the threshold requirement.

Erwin Tulfol clarified that he was not seeking to lower the threshold but wanted clarification on the matter.

The Senate impeachment court on Thursday released the names of the legal experts who will weigh in on the ruling on the 16-vote threshold to convict Duterte in her impeachment trial.

In a statement, impeachment court spokesperson Regie Tongol said that as of 2 p.m., the participation of the following legal luminaries to physically appear before the court on September 16 to present their expert opinions has been “successfully secured:”

• Retired Supreme Court Chief (SC) Justice Artemio Panganiban
• Retired SC Chief Justice Reynato Puno
• Retired SC Associate Justice Adolf Azcuna

Likewise, Tongol said the court secured the participation of retired SC Chief Justice Hilario Davide via submission of a legal memorandum instead of physical appearance.

Davide was the presiding officer during the impeachment trial of former president Joseph Estrada.—AOL, GMA News