Leila De Lima: 16 or less, voting threshold not yet ripe to adjudicate

The House prosecution panel is discussing how to proceed after Senator Chiz Escudero, the Senate impeachment court presiding officer, ruled that 16 votes are needed to convict Vice President Sara Duterte.

When asked if the prosecution panel will bring the issue before the Supreme Court, House impeachment prosecutor Rep. Leila de Lima replied, "The legal team, meaning the assisting lawyers of the panel of prosecutors, is still discussing that, as to when, if we will file and when it will be filed, because it could be done by any party."

De Lima believes it is still premature to question the ruling before the Supreme Court.

"The issue of the voting threshold or the issue of whether conviction requires the absolute minimum of 16 is to us still premature, not yet ripe for adjudication. Wala pa talagang controversy diyan. At this stage, hindi pa ripe, hilaw pa," De Lima said in an ambush interview today.

(There really isn't any controversy at this point. At this stage, it's still premature.)

"Not only that malayo pa. Kaka-start pa lang ng trial and then hindi pa natin alam yung circumstances at the time of the voting. Ilan ba talaga who were able to fully participate? Ilan ba talaga, ilan yung mga pwedeng matatawag natin na outside of the coercive powers of the Impeachment Court," the ML Party-list representative added as she cited the Avelino v Cuenco case.

(Not only that, we're still a long way from that. The trial has only just begun, and we still don't know what the circumstances will be at the time of the vote. How many senators will have been able to fully participate? How many will be outside the coercive powers of the impeachment court?)

De Lima said the issue will become "a justiciable controversy" if, for example, there would be less than 16 senators who would participate in the voting."

"There's not going to be any issue if, despite those circumstances, we lack two or three or even more senators, there will be 16 (who will vote to convict). This is what we are saying: the matter is premature, not yet ripe for adjudication," she said.

But de Lima clarified that "this is not, of course, a manifestation of any lack of confidence on the part of the prosecution in garnering the 16 votes. But we need to be clear because of those kinds of nuances."

The legislator also emphasized that senator-judges who will not be able to participate in the voting on whether to convict or acquit the vice president are not necessarily voting to acquit the respondent.

"It's not proper at this point to be saying that because the more fundamental issue is whether they ever participate in the voting or in the proceedings and in the voting. If they're unable to participate, ano yung sinasabing vote nila?" De Lima said.

House lead impeachment prosecutor Rep. Gerville Luistro, in a separate ambush interview, said the option to raise the issue before the Supreme Court is not just for the House of Representatives.

"It's not just an option for the House. It's everybody's option," Luistro said.

"We havent discussed it for the purpose of our official position. Although for myself, I have pronounced it even before we started this impeachment trial that I'm not aligned with the position of the impeachment court. But that is just my personal position. That does not bind the prosecution team," she added.

Private prosecutor and House impeachment legal spokesperson Benjamin Tolosa, Jr. said that the prosecution panel is focused on presenting a solid case no matter what the voting threshold is.

"Our stand on this has been consistent from the very start - we don't engage in vote-counting. Our focus is to establish an airtight case backed by overwhelming evidence so that at the end of the day, no matter how this two-thirds threshold is interpreted, we will be able to secure that necessary vote," he said.

"As to the legal steps that we may take regarding this matter, it's still under deliberation, discussions by the panel of prosecutors," he added.—LDF, GMA News