Atty. Michael Poa, spokesperson for Vice President Sara Duterte’s defense team, said Monday that any reduction in the voting threshold for conviction would correspondingly lower the number of votes needed for acquittal in the impeachment trial.
Poa made the statement during a press conference following the 27th day of Duterte’s impeachment trial at the Senate.
“Well, ganun ang mangyayari kasi syempre ilang miyembro na lang, ⅔ of that, so yung ⅓ naturally bababa rin siya,” Poa said.
He said the issue would be addressed during the oral arguments scheduled Wednesday, when the prosecution and defense are expected to present their positions on the disputed voting threshold.
“I think nabanggit rin naman na pag bumaba siyempre yung two-thirds naturally bumababa din yung one-third. But as to what will happen of course that will be subject to the oral arguments that will be conducted this Wednesday,” Poa said.
Asked whether a lower acquittal threshold would make it easier for the defense to secure the required votes, Poa said the team was not focusing on the numbers.
“Hindi pa namin iniisip yung mga ganyang bagay eh. Kasi very firm obviously kami sa position namin kung ano man yun you'll find out on Wednesday. But hindi namin consider yung ganyang bagay,” he said.
The Senate impeachment court is currently dealing with a dispute over whether the two-thirds voting requirement for conviction should be based on all 24 senators or only those participating in the trial. Sixteen votes are currently required for conviction if the full 24-member Senate is used as the basis.
The court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on the issue Wednesday, Sept. 23. The dispute arose after several senators were unable to participate in the proceedings, prompting the court to seek opinions from retired Supreme Court justices serving as amici curiae.
Day 27 of the trial focused on Article II of the impeachment complaint, which alleges that Duterte accumulated unexplained wealth, failed to fully disclose assets in her Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth, and maintained business interests while in public office.
The prosecution also dropped a Civil Service Commission witness from its lineup after saying the matters he was expected to cover had already been addressed by earlier witnesses.
