OSG to SC: Junk Padilla, Go petition

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate impeachment court called on the Supreme Court (SC) to throw out the petition from two senators who challenged an earlier ruling to lower the voting threshold to convict Vice President Sara Duterte.

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) filed on Nov. 3 its comment on the petition for certiorari and prohibition filed by Sens. Robinhood Padilla and Bong Go, both Duterte allies.

According to the OSG, the Senate impeachment court wanted the SC to “dismiss the petition for certiorari and prohibition for being premature and for lack of merit.”

It wanted the high tribunal to “deny petitioners’ application for the issuance of a status quo ante order, temporary restraining order and writ of preliminary injunction.”

Padilla and Go wanted the SC to invalidate the Senate impeachment court's decision in September to lower the voting threshold based on the senators present at the trial.

From the 16 votes to convict, or two-thirds of all the 24 members of the Senate, the impeachment court’s decision lowered the count to a possible 14 votes since Sens. Jinggoy Estrada, Rodante Marcoleta, Ronald dela Rosa and Loren Legarda remain absent.