Duterte trial: Retired SC justices to guide court on vote threshold

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate Impeachment Court has appointed three retired Supreme Court (SC) chief justices and one retired associate justice as amici curiae, who will guide the court on whether there is a need to change the voting threshold required to convict or acquit Vice President Sara Duterte.

Retired Chief Justices Artemio Panganiban and Reynato Puno, along with former SC Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna, will appear before the impeachment court on Sept. 16 to provide guidance on the matter.

Former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr., the presiding officer during the impeachment trial of former President Joseph Estrada, will also provide his presentation through a legal memorandum.

Article continues after this advertisement

“The impeachment court is not leaving constitutional math to guesswork or chance… The court has successfully secured the formal participation of the legal luminaries… to present their expert advisories on the Senate floor,” impeachment court spokesperson Atty. Reginald Tongol said in a statement.

FEATURED STORIES

NEWSINFO

NEWSINFO

NEWSINFO

While the three retired justices will be given time to present their arguments at the session hall, Davide’s memorandum will formally be entered into the record, Tongol explained.

READ: Senate impeachment court revisiting ‘2/3’ conviction rule

After their presentations, the senator-judges will be allowed to ask questions.

“Since an amicus curiae provides legal doctrine, not factual evidence, and the constitutional right to cross-examine applies only to fact witnesses, not scholars advising the bench, the legal panels will just sit and listen during the whole presentation,” Tongol added.

Article continues after this advertisement

Presiding Officer Francis Escudero appointed the amici curiae for Duterte’s impeachment trial after Senator-judge Erwin Tulfo appealed last Tuesday to revisit Escudero’s ruling on the voting threshold.

Escudero maintained at the start of the impeachment trial that the court would maintain a 16-vote requirement to convict impeachable officials. However, Tulfo asked to revisit the ruling in lieu of three senators who have yet to attend a single trial day due to legal battles.

Article continues after this advertisement

On Sept. 23, the prosecution and defense panels will be given 15 minutes each to make their oral arguments on the matter. After that, the senator-judges will vote on whether the 16-vote requirement will be overturned.

READ: Senate impeach court eyes Sept. 23 ruling on votes to convict Duterte

Who are the amici curiae

Panganiban was the 21st chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines from December 2005 to December 2007. Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo appointed him after his stint as an associate justice of the high court from October 1995 to December 2005. Panganiban ranked sixth in the 1960 Philippine Bar Examination.

Panganiban has been an Inquirer columnist since February 2007, writing extensively on legal and judicial issues. He was named “Journalist of the Year—Law” by the Overseas Press Club in recognition of his long-running column.

When Panganiban’s tenure as chief justice came to a close, he was followed by human rights lawyer Puno, also appointed by Macapagal-Arroyo.

Like Panganiban, Puno was an associate justice under the presidency of Fidel Ramos. Under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, Puno was appointed chairman of the Consultative Committee to review the 1987 Constitution.

Meanwhile, Davide was one of the 50 members of the Philippine Constitutional Commission who drafted the 1987 Constitution. He became the chairman of the Commission on Elections in 1988, before he was appointed associate justice in 1991 by former President Corazon Aquino.

It was Estrada who appointed him as the 20th chief justice of the country, and he was known as “the Centennial and Millennial Chief Justice.”

Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.

Your subscription has been successful.

Azcuna was also among the framers of the 1987 Constitution. He became Aquino’s presidential legal counsel, press secretary, and presidential spokesperson. He became an associate justice under Arroyo’s presidency, prior to his election as one of the five commissioners of the International Commission of Jurists from 2014 to 2019. /mcm