Absentee senator-judges? Up to them to explain to public —court spokesperson

Impeachment court spokesperson Regie Tongol on Tuesday said that it is up to the senator-judges to explain their absence from the impeachment trial to the public.

“It's hard to draw any conclusion from the actions of the senator-judges. Of course there are matters personal to them that only they can relay to the public—the reason why they are late or absent, we leave it to them and to their respective staff to relay these matters to the public,” Tongol said in a press conference.

He added that concerns regarding the attendance or tardiness of the senator-judges would only escalate when it comes to reaching a quorum.

“Kapag kulang po ang ating mga senator judges, not enough to constitute a quorum, then wala pong trial na mangyayari. So basta po ma-meet po ‘yung minimum threshold for a quorum, enough na po ‘yun para mag-conduct at magpatuloy ‘yung mga proceedings pang araw-araw sa impeachment trial,” he explained.

(If the number of senator-judges falls short of a quorum, then no trial will take place. So, as long as the minimum threshold for a quorum is met, that is sufficient to conduct and continue the day-to-day proceedings of the impeachment trial.)

When the impeachment court resumed trial on Tuesday morning, only 18 out of 24 senator-judges were declared present.

Currently, Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Rodante Marcoleta are detained over separate plunder charges, while Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa is in hiding amid an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Senator Loren Legarda, meanwhile, is on medical leave from August 11 to August 12, 2026.

Asked if the Senate as an impeachment court has rules pertaining to the absences of senator-judges, Tongol said there is none.

“Pero kung makikita ninyo naman, ‘yung ating mga senator-judges are very engaged. And I'm sure they are, as political personalities themselves because they constantly monitor the goings-on at saka ‘yung mga coverage ninyo, ng media,” he said.

(But as you can see, our senator-judges are very engaged. And I’m sure they are given that they are political figures themselves who constantly monitor the goings-on and the media coverages.)

“So they are apprised and aware naman sila and they can always access ‘yung live telecast ng Senado pati ‘yung mga dokumento mula sa clerk of court and also have their staff keep them up to speed kapag sila ay nawala ng isang araw, dalawang araw or even a week, so that they will be able, at the end of the day, be able to decide on the ultimate question na kung guilty ba o hindi sa kahuli-hulihan,” he added.

(So, they are well-informed and aware, and they can also access the Senate’s live telecasts and documents from the Clerk of Court, and have their staff keep them updated if they are away for a day or two, or even a week, so that they will be able to decide on the ultimate question of whether the accused is guilty or not.) — BM, GMA News