House prosecutor expects voting threshold in Sara Duterte trial to reach SC

House prosecutor and San Juan Representative Belle Zamora on Monday said she expects the issue surrounding the voting threshold in Vice President Sara Duterte’s impeachment trial to eventually be brought before the Supreme Court, although the prosecution will not initiate the move.

“Yes, I need someone who will bring it up sa Supreme Court. Hintayin na lang natin (Let’s just wait),” Zamora said.

Asked if the House prosecution panel would file the petition, the lawmaker said they are focused on presenting their case before the Senate impeachment court.

“Not us. We are very busy presenting the evidence," she noted.

She also said there is no need for anyone to seek the prosecution panel’s approval before elevating the issue to the High Court.

“Hindi kailangan may basbas namin for someone to bring it up sa Supreme Court. After all, sinabi na ni Presiding Officer Chiz Escudero that the threshold is 16. And, well, the parties or anyone has the option to avail of legal remedies.”

(No one needs our approval to bring it before the Supreme Court. After all, Presiding Officer Chiz Escudero has already said the threshold is 16. The parties—or anyone—have the option to avail themselves of legal remedies.)

Zamora added that resolving the issue early would help avoid uncertainty before the Senate votes on the impeachment case.

“Well, the issue is ripe for adjudication already dahil we have to settle it once and for all para malaman natin because eventually, mabobotohan na din.”

(The issue is already ripe for adjudication because we have to settle it once and for all, since eventually there will be a vote.)

She further noted that the Constitution does not specifically mention the number 16 as the required votes for conviction.

“Yes, 16 is not mentioned anywhere in the Constitution. What we have is just two-thirds of all members of the Senate. So, the fact that two-thirds was used means that it is…” she said.

When asked if anyone had informed the prosecution that a petition would indeed be filed before the Supreme Court, Zamora said they had no information.

“Wala kaming idea. So for us, it is 16, and we don’t know who will file or if anyone will file,” she said.

(We have no idea. For us, it is 16, and we don’t know who will file or whether anyone will file.)

Still, she said the prosecution expects that an interested citizen may eventually seek judicial clarification.

“We’re just assuming that some citizen will file it, just because everyone, of course, is interested in the result of this,” she further said.

Despite the possibility of a Supreme Court case, Zamora said the prosecution would respect the Senate impeachment court’s authority.

“No, we should not question the impeachment court. Of course, like I said, as prosecutors, we are officers of the court, and we will abide by what the presiding officer of the impeachment court says," she added.

Earlier, Senate impeachment court Presiding Officer Francis “Chiz” Escudero said that 16 votes are needed for conviction, while some legal experts have argued that the issue may ultimately require clarification from the Supreme Court. —AOL, GMA News